Latvian parties spend less on campaigning before parliamentary elections

Political parties have declared 1.85 million euros in campaign spending before Latvia’s 15th Saeima elections, about 100,000 euros less than during the comparable period before the 2022 parliamentary elections, LSM reported. Latvia’s Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau has received about 60 complaints alleging campaign violations, with at least four cases confirmed.

Since the start of the pre-election campaign period in June, the largest declared spending totals were recorded by the United List at 377,425 euros, Latvia First at 314,800 euros and the Union of Greens and Farmers at 258,176 euros.

The Society for Openness Delna attributed the lower spending to several factors. Fourteen political lists are participating in this election, compared with 19 four years ago.

Voters’ media habits have also changed, with parties and alliances making greater use of online platforms and social media instead of traditional advertising channels such as television, newspapers and radio.

Another possible factor is the growing use of artificial intelligence, Delna researcher Arturs Bikovs said. Political organisations can use AI to produce texts and other communications without hiring political technologists or communication specialists. Although the results may be worse overall, Bikovs said, AI tools costing about 20 to 50 euros per month could help reduce campaign expenses.