The National Alliance political party has decided to pick Latvia’s President Egils Levits for a second term in this post.
The absolute majority of the party voted in favour of Levits, said the party’s leader Raivis Dzintars after the meeting.
So far two people have confirmed their presidential candidacy. One is Levits and the other is businessman and founder of the Combined List party Uldis Pīlēns. The latter has support from Combined List and a number of opposition deputies, but it is too soon to say he has a sure and stable majority of votes.
The same can be said for Levits if the Combined List picks its own candidate.
Only New Unity politicians have promised to support Levits if the National Alliance pick him for re-election.
Presidential elections will take place in the Saeima on the last day of May.
Levits graduated from University of Hamburg with a degree in law, social sciences and philosophy.
Levits previously served as Latvia’s ambassador to Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Hungary. He was also in the 5th Saeima and the country’s Minister of Justice.
Levits was later elected judge of the European Court of Human Rights from Latvia. After that he became a judge of the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Levits is the co-author of the Declaration of Restoration of Independence of the 4th of May 1990. He also worked on the creation of the preamble to the Constitution of the Republic of Latvia.
He was elected Latvia’s president in 2019.
Also read: If he becomes Latvia’s president, Pīlēns won’t “get rid of” Kariņš