Since June 2024, there has been a 7.7 percentage point drop in the share of respondents who believe President Edgars Rinkēvičs has fulfilled his promises “very well” or “rather well,” according to a survey conducted by research center SKDS at the initiative of Latvian Television’s program Kas notiek Latvijā? (What’s Happening in Latvia?).
In the latest poll, 22.7% of respondents rated Rinkēvičs’ performance as “very good” and 26.3% as “rather good.” A year ago, those numbers stood at 29.1% and 27.6%, respectively. Meanwhile, the proportion of respondents who rated the President’s work as average increased from 14% to 20% over the same period.
There has also been a moderate increase in negative evaluations. This June, 13.1% of respondents said the President had fulfilled his ceremonial oath “very poorly” and 9.9% said “rather poorly,” compared to 10.6% and 8.9% a year earlier.
Support for Rinkēvičs is significantly higher among Latvian-speaking households,
where 63% gave a positive rating (“very good” or “rather good”). In contrast, among Russian-speaking households, only 10% chose “very good” and 15% “rather good.” Notably, 24% of Russian-speaking respondents rated his performance as “very poor,” and 28% gave an average rating.
Regionally, Rinkēvičs received the highest approval in Vidzeme (23% “very good”, 37% “rather good”) and the lowest in Latgale (14% “very good”, 23% “rather good”).
Interestingly, rural residents gave him relatively stronger support—22% “very good” and 35% “rather good.”
The survey also found that those with higher incomes and higher education levels tended to view the President more favorably. As was the case last year, the youngest age groups—18 to 24 and 25 to 34—rated Rinkēvičs’ performance the most positively.
The June 2025 survey included 1,005 respondents from across Latvia.
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