Reinsalu says Reform Party is discussing replacing Michal

Isamaa leader Urmas Reinsalu told ERR that the Reform Party is discussing how to replace Prime Minister Kristen Michal after Estonia’s governing coalition became a minority government.

Reinsalu said both Reform Party members and other politicians had told him about the discussions. He said the public’s lack of confidence in the government had spread to politicians in the coalition.

“I predict that this is only the beginning of the coalition’s collapse,” Reinsalu said. “Political disorientation, infighting and agony will now accelerate alongside the coalition’s official transition to a minority government. The power struggle and discussions among Reform Party politicians about how to replace Kristen Michal will also intensify.”

Reinsalu said Michal should seriously consider resigning. He has repeatedly called for snap elections and said he had not abandoned that position, although parliamentary elections are already scheduled for March next year.

Asked by ERR whether snap elections would make sense in the current situation, Reinsalu said the next steps would depend on how events developed and on the prime minister’s assessment of the situation.

“My recommendation is that he should not cling to his chair. Society is tired of this policy,” Reinsalu said, adding that he would not rule out any option.

Reinsalu did not say whether Isamaa planned to seek a vote of no confidence against a specific minister. He said opposition parties had reason to consult one another, but that any no-confidence motion should have specific grounds based on past, present or future failures.

He said Reform Party members were seriously discussing replacing Michal, describing it as an active behind-the-scenes debate aimed at increasing the party’s support through a change of leadership. Reinsalu said he was sceptical that such a move would work and predicted that the coalition could fracture further.

Reinsalu said Reform Party members themselves had told him about the debate, as had other politicians. He declined to discuss possible alternatives or the party’s tactics.

The departures of parliament members Kalev Stoicescu from Eesti 200 and Meelis Kiili from the Reform Party mean that the governing coalition will have 50 votes in Estonia’s 101-member parliament. Stoicescu announced his departure on Sunday and Kiili on Monday.