Parliamentary Elections, 1 October 2022

Following an invitation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, based on the findings and conclusions of the ODIHR Needs Assessment Mission undertaken from 25 to 28 April 2022, and in accordance with its mandate, ODIHR has deployed an Election Assessment Mission (EAM) to the 1 October parliamentary elections in Latvia.

The ODIHR EAM, headed by Ditmir Bushati, began its work in Latvia on 15 September. The EAM includes eight international staff, drawn from eight OSCE participating States.

The mission will assess the electoral process in terms of its compliance with OSCE commitments and other international obligations and standards for democratic elections, as well as with national legislation. Observers will, in particular, look into issues related to the revised legal framework, the election administration including the implementation of new voter registration practices, as well as regulations on candidate registration, the campaign and its financing, and media. Observers will consider the inclusiveness of the electoral process, including the participation of women, national minorities, and persons with disabilities.

In line with ODIHR’s methodology, the ODIHR EAM will not carry out systematic or comprehensive observation of the voting, counting, and tabulation on election day. Mission members will, however, visit a small number of polling stations.

A final report will be issued approximately two months after the end of the electoral process.

Previous Elections

ODIHR has previously observed seven elections in Latvia, most recently in 2018.