Krišjānis Kariņš, Latvia’s Prime Minister since 2019, is stepping down.
The leader of the Baltic state made the announcement during a Monday, August 14th, press conference. The prime minister has asked his liberal-conservative ‘New Unity’ party to propose a candidate for his former position, which it plans to select this Wednesday.
According to the Latvian Constitution, every new head of government must be appointed by the president. On X, formerly Twitter, President Edgars Rinkēvičs thanked Kariņš for his work.
On Thursday, Kariņš will formally hand his resignation letter to Rinkēvičs.
During the press conference, Kariņš said he no longer felt the desire to lead the next coalition government, for which his ambitions had been frustrated.
Under Kariņš, Latvia is governed through a three-party coalition, which besides ‘New Unity’ also includes the national-conservative ‘National Alliance’ and the centrist ‘United List’.
Within that coalition, fault lines, however, started showing, which prompted the 58-year-old Kariņš to announce last Friday he would dissolve New Unity’s coalition with the National Alliance and the United List parties.
Believing it would help with the efficiency of the government’s work, Kariņš has long advocated for an expansion of the existing coalition, so it would include the Union of Greens and Farmers and the left-wing Progressive Party.
Indeed, that Friday, Kariņš said he was already negotiating with those parties towards that end. Initially, he voiced a willingness to stay on as head of the new government, and that he would devote all of his “time and energy to looking for opportunities to form a different, alternative government.”
His coalition partners have, however, been steadfast in rejecting any such expansion, which presumably made Kariņš throw in the towel. “We must find a way to put aside minor differences of opinion and form a broader, stronger, and more dynamic government,” Kariņš again pleaded during Monday’s press conference.
The same day he announced his resignation, Kariņš took to X, formerly known as Twitter, where he accused his obstinate partners of “blocking work for welfare and economic growth.”
As outlined in Latvia’s Constitution, a prime minister’s resignation automatically means the resignation of the entire government. Until a new cabinet is appointed, ministers will however continue to perform their duties in the interim.
