Latvia

Parliament

Political system Political systems: Presidential, Parliamentary, Presidential-Parliamentary, Monarchy, Communist, Transitional.
Parliamentary system
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Structure of parliament Structure of parliament: Unicameral, bicameral
Unicameral
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IPU membership Current membership status
Yes
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Data on women

empty

Basic information > About parliament

Speaker

Speaker
Edvards Smiltēns (Male)
Year of birth
1984
Additional information
Elected on 1 Nov. 2022.
See historical data for this field.

Secretary general

Secretary General
Lelde Rafelde (Female)
Notes Additional information about the Secretary General, in particular regarding their term.
Appointed on 1 July 2017.

Members

Current number of members, by sex
Men The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
71
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Women The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
29
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Percentage of women Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
29% See historical data for this field.

Age

Average age of all members Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
48.06
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Youngest member (years) Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
23
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Youngest member
Ilja Ivanovs (Male)
Oldest member (years) Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
74
Oldest member
Aleksandrs Kirsteins (Male)
Total number of MPs, 45 years of age or younger
43 See historical data for this field.
Total number of MPs, 46 years of age or older
57 See historical data for this field.
Total per sex
Total of male
71 See historical data for this field.
Total of female
29 See historical data for this field.
Total per age interval
18-20
0
21-30
6 See historical data for this field.
31-40
28 See historical data for this field.
41-45
9 See historical data for this field.
46-50
12 See historical data for this field.
51-60
28 See historical data for this field.
61-70
15 See historical data for this field.
71-80
2 See historical data for this field.
81-90
0
91 and over
0
Number of members, by age
Breakdown of members by age and gender
18 - 20 21 - 30 31 - 40 41 - 45 46 - 50 51 - 60 61 - 70 71 - 80 81 - 90 91 and over Totals per gender
Totals per age interval 0 6 28 9 12 28 15 2 0 0
Total <= 45: 43 Total >= 46: 57
Male 0 5 21 6 9 19 10 1 0 0 71
Female 0 1 7 3 3 9 5 1 0 0 29
Percentage of members, by age
Age as last election or renewalOverallMaleFemale
Percentage of MPs 30 years of age or younger6%5%1%
Percentage of MPs 40 years of age or younger34%26%8%
Percentage of MPs 45 years of age or younger43%32%11%

Reserved seats and quotas

Electoral quota for women Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
No
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Elections > Historical data on women

Women's suffrage

Date of independence For countries that become independent after 1940
1991
Women’s right to vote
Women’s right to vote Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1918
National or local Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
When Latvia was first independent, women were granted the right to vote in 1918. Under Soviet administration, women had equally the right to vote and this right was confirmed at independence, in 1990.
Women’s right to stand for election
Women's right to stand for election Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1918
National or local Stand for Election: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage Stand for Election : Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes Stand for Election: Additional Notes on right to stand for election
When Latvia was first independent, women were granted the right to vote and stand for election in 1918. Under Soviet administration, women retained these rights; they were confirmed at independence, in 1990.
First woman in parliament
First woman in parliament Year in which first woman entered parliament
1930
First woman speaker
Year of first woman speaker Date at which, for the first time in the country's parliamentary history, a woman became Presiding Officer of Parliament or of one of its Houses.
1995