Dismantling of Soviet monument in Pardaugava will not have direct impact on election results - political expert

  • 2022-08-31
  • LETA/TBT Staff

RIGA - The dismantling of the Soviet-era monument in Riga's Pardaugava will not directly affect the Saeima election results, said political scientist and public relations specialist Filips Rajevskis in a conversation with LETA.

The dismantling of the monument in Victory Park has created a positive atmosphere in relation to the parties that voted for this decision, however, most of residents do not notice which parties support which motions, the political scientist noted. In his opinion, the risk of negations has been removed for the parties in power, because if the monument was not dismantled before the elections, they would face many problems.

If Riga Mayor Martins Stakis was in a political party, it could have a positive impact on the election results for that party, however, he has no political affiliation, said Rajevskis.

On the other hand, those Russian-speaking voters who did not support the dismantling of the monument were mobilized by this event, for example, by participating in protests, said the political scientist. However, since the monument has been brought down anyway, this part of the electorate understands that the parties that stood against the removal of the monument have not achieved what they hoped for, which has created a negative background for these parties, but in Rajevskis' view, this will not have much influence on the election.

Moreover, according to the political scientist, since the moment was taken down, this issue has started to "cool down" and lose relevance - and Rajevskis points out that "now other things are happening, life is moving forward".

As reported, the 14th Saeima elections will be held on October 1.