Board of Unity party resigns

RIGA - Following Unity party's poor showing in the recent Saeima election, the board of the party resigned on Friday, and a new board is due to be elected at a party congress scheduled for November 28, Unity board member Evika Silina announced on social media.

She noted that, leading up to the congress, the party will pay special attention to the views of young people and new members in order to pool ideas for the necessary changes within the political party.

According to Silina, the election results meant a "yellow card" for the party, prompting it to critically evaluate both its past decisions and communication with the public. The Unity leader emphasizes that the party must change, listen more closely to voters, and speak to people more often, more directly, and in a way that is easier to understand.

The prime minister notes that she wants to build a more open dialogue with the public by listening to questions, opinions, and criticism in order to better understand voters’ expectations and the changes needed in the party’s work.

Until now, the Unity board consisted of 14 politicians, including chairman Edmunds Jurevics, his deputies Raimonds Cudars and Zanda Kalnina-Lukasevica, as well as Arvils Aseradens, Evika Silina, Rihards Kozlovskis, Vilnis Kirsis, Inese Libina-Egnere, and other party representatives.

At the same time, Silina notes that the United List, the winner of the Saeima election, is expected to issue a statement on Monday regarding its next steps and possible negotiations with current coalition partners.

The United List won a decisive victory in the 15th Saeima elections, securing 41 mandates. Latvia First (LPV) was runner-up with 17 mandates, followed by Sovereign Power/New Latvians with 15, the National Alliance and the Progressives with 10 mandates each, and New Unity with seven mandates.