Saeima candidate Rijkuris declines to answer local Bauska news outlet's questions
National Alliance candidate Dainis Rijkuris has told local outlet 'Bauskas Dzīve' he will not answer its questions about his Saeima candidacy. He works for the Bauska municipality and is also known online as content creator 'True Latvian'.
Dainis Rijkuris, who is running in the Saeima elections in the Zemgale constituency for the National Alliance under number 17, informed local outlet 'Bauskas Dzīve' by email that he has decided not to answer the questions it sent him. In his reply, the candidate thanked the outlet for reaching out and for its interest in him, but asked that his decision be accepted without further explanation, wishing the outlet success in its future work.
'Bauskas Dzīve' had prepared several questions for the candidate, covering the top problems he believes the state should address in Bauska municipality, how he would help keep jobs and schools in the regions to stop young people moving to Riga or abroad, whether he has served in the National Guard or completed reservist or military training, his personal support for Ukraine, and earlier remarks in which he said he doesn't particularly enjoy being a deputy.
Background and current role
Rijkuris was born in 1980 and earned a master's degree in 2006 from the Riga International School of Economics and Business Administration. He is deputy head of the National Alliance's Bauska branch and previously served as a council member in Vecumnieki municipality before the administrative-territorial reform. He currently heads the Audit and Capital Companies Supervision Department at Bauska municipality, established in 2022, where one other employee also works. In an earlier interview, he explained that the department's role is to assess whether municipal resources are used efficiently across all areas, including capital companies and institutions.
Known online as 'True Latvian'
On social media, Rijkuris is known by the pseudonym 'True Latvian' and has nearly 190,000 followers, many of them foreigners. He uses humor to explain Latvian customs, such as mushroom foraging and birch sap collection, to an international audience, and has also discussed culture as a marketing tool. This year he performed his stand-up show 'Parunāsim' in several cities, including Ogre.
