Kulbergs: United List will not form coalition with Šlesers and LPV
United List leader Kulbergs has said his party will not join a coalition with Ainārs Šlesers and his party Latvia First, calling their election promises unrealistic, while leaving open the question of cooperation with NA and New Unity.
Edmunds Kulbergs, leader of the United List (AS), said after the 15th Saeima election results became known that voters had cast their ballots not along ideological lines but out of a desire for change in the country. He acknowledged that his party will now need to take on responsibility and find a coalition partner willing to genuinely commit to that change.
Kulbergs stated plainly that the United List is not prepared to form a coalition with Ainārs Šlesers and his party Latvia First (LPV), arguing that the promises made by these political forces during the campaign are not realistic to fulfil. At the same time, he declined to comment on whether the party would continue its existing coalition with the National Alliance and New Unity, saying that decision still needs to be made within the party.
Election results
The Central Election Commission, having completed vote counting across all 1,059 polling stations, confirmed that the United List won the election with 41 seats in the new parliament. Latvia First came second with 17 seats, followed by Sovereign Power/Towards Latvia's Restoration (originally reported as "New Latvians Union") with 15 seats and the National Alliance with ten. The Progressives also secured ten seats, while New Unity will be represented by seven deputies.
Voter turnout stood at 51.81%, with 807,072 of 1,557,615 eligible voters casting ballots — the lowest participation rate since Latvia regained independence.
President Edgars Rinkēvičs is scheduled to meet with all political parties elected to the new Saeima on Monday and Tuesday.
