New Party (Latvia)

The New Party (Latvian: Jaunā Partija, JP) was a centrist political party in Latvia.[1][2] Formed by composer Raimonds Pauls, the party won eight seats in the Saeima at the 1998 election on the back of Pauls's popularity.[3] After the election, the JP entered into a minority government with Latvian Way and For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK.

In the June 1999 presidential election, the party nominated Pauls for the presidency, and Pauls came first after five ballots, but withdrew his candidacy, as he still couldn't receive more than a third of the votes.[4] The party dropped out of the governing coalition the following month, when it was replaced by the People's Party under new PM Andris Šķēle.[5] In May 2000, it entered the centre-right governing coalition. However, Pauls left the party to become an independent MP in August 2000, leading to its influence declining.[6] The party dissolved after Pauls's departure, with a third of its MPs joining the new Latvia's First Party.[7]

  1. ^ Russia & Eurasia Facts & Figures Annual. Academic International Press. 2003. pp. 258. ISBN 978-0-8476-9859-2.
  2. ^ Berglund et al (2004), p. 109
  3. ^ Clemens, Walter C. (2000). Annual Survey of Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union: Holding the Course. M.E. Sharpe. p. 134. ISBN 978-0-7656-0360-9.
  4. ^ Berglund et al (2004), p. 127
  5. ^ Berglund et al (2004), p. 128
  6. ^ Clemens, Walter C. (2001). The Baltic Transformed: Complexity Theory and European Security. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 67. ISBN 978-0-8476-9859-2.
  7. ^ Berglund et al (2004), p. 117