Choose
Parliamentary elections in Estonia in the shadow of the Ukraine war
According to preliminary information from the electoral commission, turnout was 63.7 percent. photo
© Sergei Grits/AP/dpa
Estonia has elected a new parliament. A dominant theme was Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and its aftermath. Can Prime Minister Kaja Kallas convince the Estonians with her course?
Overshadowed by the effects of the Russian war against Ukraine, Estonia has elected a new parliament. According to polls before the election, a victory for Prime Minister Kaja Kallas’ liberal business reform party was on the horizon. Kallas, who has been the first woman to head Estonia’s government since 2021, is considered one of the most resolute supporters of Ukraine in Europe.
The 45-year-old currently leads a three-party coalition with the Social Democrats and the conservative party Isamaa. However, it is unclear whether this alliance can remain in power despite the high approval ratings for Kallas. A total of up to six parties could make it into the parliament of the Baltic EU and NATO country. The first official results are expected on Monday night.
Possible coalitions after the election are likely to be determined in particular by the performance of the two opposition forces – the right-wing populist party EKRE and the left-wing Center Party. The liberal grouping Eesti 200 also has promising chances of moving into parliament for the first time. Even before the vote, pollsters and experts expected the formation of a government to be difficult.
One of the dominant issues in the election campaign was Russia’s war against Ukraine, which Estonia sees as a direct threat to national security. The Baltic state shares an almost 300-kilometer border with Russia. The war also raised thorny questions about how to deal with one’s own society. About a quarter of the approximately 1.2 million inhabitants of Estonia are of Russian origin.
Since Russia’s attack, Kallas has emerged as a staunch supporter of EU sanctions on Moscow and of arms sales to Kiev. She also resolutely called for a strengthening of NATO’s eastern flank. “Ukraine is also fighting for Estonia,” she emphasized again in the television debate of the top candidates. Under her leadership, the country of 1.2 million people has given the equivalent of more than one percent of its economic output in the form of military aid to Ukraine and taken in more than 60,000 war refugees.
EKRE boss Martin Helme accused the government of endangering its own defense capabilities through its commitment to Ukraine. He also accuses Kallas of a failed economic policy: Due to the rapid increase in inflation, the cost of living has risen sharply – the inflation rate was recently almost 18 percent. This is of great concern to many citizens.
A special feature of the election was the possibility of voting via the Internet, which Estonia was the first country in Europe to introduce. This time, almost a third of the 966,000 eligible voters put their cross online before the actual election day – a new record. Among them were President Alar Karis and Kallas. According to provisional figures from the election commission in Tallinn, voter turnout was 63.7 percent.