United List's Kurzeme candidates Kleinberga and Kučinskis prepare for 15th Saeima elections

Nellija Kleinberga, running for the United List in Kurzeme under number 10 in the 15th Saeima elections, previously served as a lawmaker — elected to the 12th Saeima in 2014 from the Latvian Association of Regions. She says her prior experience means she could start working in parliament immediately if elected. The Kurzeme list is headed by current finance minister Māris Kučinskis, who has spent recent years focused on healthcare and now serves as executive director of the Saldus municipality.

Kleinberga says she was not personally involved in drafting the party's Kurzeme candidate list or its programme, but was briefed on its contents and found no contradictions with her views. If elected, she would prioritize healthcare management reform — shifting the state health insurance system toward a fund-based model, potentially through a small tax on working people, to secure additional funding for the sector.

Other pledges

The party's programme also calls for reforming the municipal finance equalization system to reduce inequality between regions and cut down on mutual settlements between municipalities. It further proposes greater decentralization to planning regions, expansion of the National Defence Service into technological fields such as drone operation, and a goal of achieving a deficit-free state budget within four years. In healthcare, the party pledges to reform the quota system and introduce unified registration to reduce bureaucracy for doctors and waiting times for patients.

Kleinberga states she would not cooperate with parties whose positions on security and Russia's aggression against Ukraine remain unclear. Former colleagues from Skrunda and the Saeima describe her as organized and experienced in municipal affairs. In her income declaration, Kleinberga reported earnings of 60,248 euros last year and five debt obligations totaling 33,843 euros.