Latvia’s new Saeima sees sweeping turnover and a record faction

About two-thirds of Latvia’s previous lawmakers will not return to the 15th Saeima, which meets for its first session on Tuesday, LSM reports. Many of the new MPs have no previous parliamentary experience.

The United List has formed the largest faction in the history of Latvia’s parliament, with 41 deputies. Half of its members are first-time MPs. The National Alliance and New Unity have lost influence, while the Union of Greens and Farmers has failed to enter parliament for the first time in its 24-year history. Newcomers Sovereign Power/Association of Young Latvians won the third-best result and have 15 deputies.

The United List is made up of the Latvian Green Party, the Latvian Association of Regions, the Liepāja Party and the Latvia Restart association. Its 41 seats are more than three times the 15 it won in the 14th Saeima election, although that faction later fell to 12 members. In the new parliament, 19 United List MPs represent the Latvian Association of Regions, 13 the Latvian Green Party, three the Liepāja Party and six Latvia Restart.

Latvia First has 17 deputies, almost twice its initial nine seats in the previous Saeima. It later lost one member when Oļegs Burovs left the faction. Only four MPs from its previous lineup were re-elected. Party leader Ainārs Šlesers was also elected to the 14th Saeima, but moved to Riga City Council after the 2025 municipal elections. The new faction includes several former mayors who served in opposition in both the previous Saeima and Riga City Council.