On 28 November this year, KNAB - which has responsibility for authorising the payments based on its monitoring of campaign spending - adopted decisions on the allocation of state budget funding to political organizations.
In assessing the received applications, in accordance with the number of votes obtained in the 13th Saeima elections on October 6, KNAB rubber-stamped annual payments to ten political parties which garnered 2% of the vote or more. The threshold for actually winning seats in parliament under Latvia's proportional representation system is higher, at 5%.
The following parties will get funding in the following amounts, based on their performance at the polls:
- Harmony Social Democratic Party - €118,653.07
- KPV LV - €85,387.44
- New Conservative Party - €81,432.74
- For Development / For! - €72,196.35
- National Alliance for All Latvia! - For Fatherland and Freedom / LNNK - €66 003.73
- Green and Farmers Union €59 409.25
- New Unity €40,144.82
- Latvian Regional Alliance €24 862.78
- Progressives - €15.675.38
Latvia's Russian Union was in line for €19,179.94 of state funding but KNAB pointed out that, in accordance with the Law on Financing of Political Organizations, the party should hold a separate account with a credit institution registered in Latvia.
The party account for donations listed on the official website of the party is held at Paysera, an online bank registered in Lithuania which was fined for failures in its anti- money laundering measures in 2015 and last year was forced by regulators to remove an executive from office following an inspection.
The decision may be appealed.
State budget financing is allocated to a political party or party association, for which more than two percent of voters voted in the previous Saeima elections, with a sum equivalent to 0.71 euros per calendar year for each vote cast. State budget financing is granted for four years by paying into the account of a credit institution registered in Latvia, making payments four times a year - by January 15, April 15, July 15, and October 15.
