Leaders from the two parties signed a long-awaited merger agreement (Photo courtesy of People's Union)
TALLINN -- Estonia's People Union has officially merged with the Social Democratic Party. The parties hope the move will give them increased clout ahead of national elections early next year.
"Estonia needs a strong political force, able to bridge the gap between the state and people, and provide an alternative," said Social Democratic Party Chairman Juri Pihl and the Estonian People's Union Chairman Karel Ruutli in a press release.
The new union will conrol 15 seats in the 101-member parliament.
"By combining each other's competencies and the representation of both urban land, we can provide a strong sense of collective political force in developing solutions to key problems in Estonia," said Ruutli.
The People's Union has been looking for a partner to merge with for the past few months. The Center Party, Green Party and Social Democrats all sent official proposals to the People’s Union late last year, but the party had so far resisted an official merger.
The Social Democrats were dumped from the ruling coalition following a disagreement with Prime Minister Andrus Ansip over enemployment benefits.
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