Nearly one in five Latvian voters remains undecided

Nearly one in five people planning to vote in Latvia’s parliamentary elections still do not know which candidate list to support, according to a September survey by research centre SKDS, LSM reported. The share of undecided voters has fallen, while experts say uncertainty is normal because no party programme can be a perfect match for everyone.

Social psychologist Ivars Austers, a professor at the University of Latvia, said people often struggle to make important decisions. He compared choosing a party to buying an apartment: one option may be well located but small and expensive, while another may be attractive but poorly laid out. In the same way, he said, no election programme is likely to align perfectly with a voter’s values.

Latvian Television spoke to four people who plan to vote but have not made their final choice. They included financial analyst Leons, who votes in every election; economist and researcher Armands Vēveris; Vigo Valdavs, who did not vote in the previous election four years ago but plans to vote this time; and student Pēteris Celmiņš, for whom these will be his first parliamentary elections.

Valdavs said he no longer trusts any party, but believes a strong leader should be willing to take responsibility and show that the whole team will follow through. He also said he does not expect every campaign promise to be fulfilled, and instead considers what parties might achieve in the best-case scenario.