The extraordinary Riga City Council election will be postponed until August 29, and not September 5 as previously indicated, reported the LETA newswire Aoril 9.
Opposition parties Saskaņa (Harmony) and the Zaļo un Zemnieku savienība (Greens and Farmers Union, ZZS) continue to register the greatest levels of support among voters, according to the latest polling carried out for LTV by the SKDS pollster.
On 7 April 2020, the Latvian Cabinet approved the extension of the posting of four civilian experts – Raimonds Deičmanis, Eva Ikauniece, Raimonds Koptenkovs and Oskars Kastēns – as part of the European Union (EU) Advisory Mission for Civil Security Sector Reform Ukraine (EUAM).
The government coalition has agreed to move upcoming snap municipal elections in Rīga to September 5, 2020, politicians told the press after the weekly coalition cooperation meeting on Monday.
Next week the government will most likely extend the state of emergency, leading to more people who will need assistance in returning to Latvia and possibly additional repatriation flight as part of the continuing assistance being provided to residents abroad, according to Foreign Affairs Minister Edgars Rinkevičs (New Unity) on April 3.
Latvia's parliament, the Saeima, approved Jānis Vitenbergs (KPV.LV party) as the new Minister of Economics on April 2.
Following the lead of the cabinet and other state institutions, the Latvian parliament or Saeima enters a new era April 2 when it conducts its first ever sitting by video conference.
Latvia offered words of encouragement to Ukraine April 4 after the Ukrainian parliament passed a major reform package in its first reading.
Rīgas municipal temporary administrative director Edvīns Balševics suspended the city's executive director Juris Radzevičs (Honor to Serve Riga) due to irresponsible actions during the emergency situation caused by the Covid-19 novel coronavirus pandemic, while executing his duties as executive director and shareholder at municipal companies, according to a Rīga City Council press release on March 31.
Latvian State President Egils Levits had a telephone call with his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko March in which the pair discussed a future visit of the authoritarian leader to Latvia, reported the Latvian presidential press service.
Latvia lined up with a longlist of other states March 23 to condemn elections held in the occupied Georgian territory of Abkhazia as illegitimate.
After Saeima parliamentary member Artuss Kaimiņš announced that he had tested positive for the Covid-19 novel coronavirus, the Saeima Press Service announced on March 21 that all MPs and Saeima workers were urged to get tested, and several MPs and ministers have already announced that they've tested negative.
Jurijs Perevoščikovs, head of the Infectious Disease Risk Analysis and Prevention Department at the Disease Prevention and Control Center (SPKC), told members of the press March 21 that all 100 Saeima members will be tested for the Covid-19 coronavirus after MP Artuss Kaimiņš tested positive for the virus.
Independent Saeima deputy Artuss Kaimiņš confirmed March 21 that he has tested positive for coronavirus.
Latvia's parliament, the Saeima, on March 20 gave rapid approval to the government's latest emergency measures at an extraordinary sitting.
On March 17 the Latvian cabinet supported the Ministry of Environmental Protection and Regional Development Ministry initiative to postpone the Rīga extraordinary municipal elections until June 6.
Coalition party KPV LV's parliamentary faction and board have decided to nominate Saeima MP and Economic, Agricultural, Environmental and Regional Policy Committee Chair Jānis Vitenbergs for the role of Economics Minister, as the current Minister Ralfs Nemiro steps down, according to the “Panorāma” broadcast and Latvian Radio on March 16.
Latvia's President Egils Levits contacted Estonian President Kersti Kaljulaid and Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda to discuss the current situation in the Baltic States concerning precautionary measures to limit the spread of coronavirus COVID-19, the presidential press service reported March 16.
Latvia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced March 13 some temporary changes to the manner in which consular services are provided overseas.
The District Administrative Court has decided to grant an application by the small "Alternative" political party to change the date of the Riga City Council elections set by the Central Election Commission (CVK) to from April 25 to May 2, 2020, reported LTV on March 13.
It took five days of heated debate but on March 13 the Saeima finally got through its work agenda dating from March 5 and passed the government's contentious regional administrative reform plans in a second reading.
To the outside world today is March 12 but as far as Latvia's parliament, the Saeima, is concerned, it is still March 5 - because one week on, the contentious debate on regional administrative reform is still rumbling on.
Saeima deputies returned to the legislative cliff face March 11 for a fourth day of debate on the government's regional administrative reform plans.
Saeima deputies returned to the question of the government's proposed regional administrative reforms March 10 with a third day of debate as they work through more than 300 proposed amendments to the controversial legislation.
Latvian State President Egils Levits - a former judge - has decided to pardon one person who had made an application to his office for presidential clemency, and rejected 14 other applicants, a release from the presidential chancellery said March 10.
Latvia's parliament, the Saeima, started a second day of debate on the government's regional administrative reform program March 6 following a marathon session a day earlier.
Senior officials from the Baltic states and Poland on March 5 released a joint statement voicing their full backing for the European Union membership hopes of countries in the western Balkans. The statement was released at the end of a joint visit to the region and is reproduced below.
Protests took place in Rīga and elsewhere March 5 as municipalities and individuals objected to reforms of regional administration that would see the current network of municipalities given a major overhaul. Under the proposed new law, the number of municipalities would be reduced from more than 100 to 40.
Planned protests against regional administrative reform on March 5 could result in tail-backs and congestion on several roads, reported LTV on March 4.
From 3 March to 5 March 2020, the Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edgars Rinkēvičs, is visiting Albania and North Macedonia together with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland, Jacek Czaputowicz, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Linas Linkevičius, and the Undersecretary for European Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, Märt Volmer.