Estonian parties begin assembling election lists and programmes

With less than six months until Estonia’s parliamentary elections, the largest parties are drawing up candidate lists and election programmes, ERR reports. Some have already started campaigning, while several parties will not approve their final lists and programmes until January.

EKRE prepares for possible snap elections

EKRE adviser Aarne Mäe said preparations for the candidate lists had been under way for some time and had been accelerated because of the possibility of early elections.

If the process continues at the usual pace, the party will hold its internal elections in November, when the order of candidates in electoral districts will be decided. The party council will approve the national list at the beginning of January, Mäe said.

Social Democrats campaign for lower food prices tax

Piret Hartman, secretary general of the Social Democratic Party, said the party had also been preparing its lists since spring. Electoral districts will make their final decisions on candidates and their order at the end of the year, while the national list will be approved at a general meeting on January 16.

Hartman said the party was already campaigning by meeting people in different regions, attending events and organising activities. Outdoor campaigning for a reduction in the value-added tax on food is under way in several electoral districts. The party plans larger campaign events in October and November, and will approve its election programme at the January general meeting.

Estonia 200 continues preparations as part of daily work

Anneli Kannus, executive director of Estonia 200, said the party was not conducting separate preparations for the elections.

“For the party, making policy is a daily job,” Kannus said, adding that it was difficult to separate election preparations from the discussions and work already taking place within the party, parliament and government. She said Estonia 200’s more detailed plans for the parliamentary elections would be finalised in the coming months.

Centre Party gathers proposals from local branches

Centre Party secretary general Anneli Ott said the party was preparing its platform and collecting proposals from local branches. It was also holding regular meetings with representatives of various interest groups, both in its parliamentary faction and at its office.

The party’s local branches are currently working on candidate lists in the electoral districts, and the party is waiting for their proposals. The election slogan will be decided once the main focus of the platform is clear. The timetable for the lists, platform and slogan remains open, Ott said.

Isamaa has worked on its programme since spring

Isamaa secretary general Andres Metsoja said preparations for the parliamentary elections had been under way for at least six months.

Working groups for the election programme have met since spring, with all party members able to take part. The last meetings were held this week, and discussions with professional organisations will continue in the coming months.

Metsoja said the party leadership had agreed to compile all ideas collected so far by the end of September. Isamaa also plans to cost its key promises and identify funding sources, he said, arguing that the country’s finances had been driven into a deep crisis under Reform Party leadership.

Work on the candidate lists is taking place in parallel. Many well-known politicians have already agreed to stand as candidates for Isamaa, Metsoja said.