National Alliance (Latvia)
Encyclopedia
The National Alliance, officially the National Alliance "All For Latvia!" – "For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK" , abbreviated to NA, is a right-wing
political party in Latvia
. With fourteen seats in the Saeima
, the National Alliance is the fourth-largest party in the legislature. The party is a coalition of conservatives
, Latvian ethnonationalists
, and economic liberals
.
Formed as an electoral alliance
for the 2010 election, the National Alliance brought together For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK and All for Latvia!
. It won eight seats, placing it fourth amongst all parties. It formed into a formalised political party in July 2011 under the leadership of Gaidis Bērziņš
and Raivis Dzintars
. In the September 2011 election
, it increased its seats to fourteen, and it entered a centre-right
coalition, along with Zatlers' Reform Party
and Unity
, under Prime Minister
Valdis Dombrovskis
.
in 2010 by national-conservative For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK and far right All For Latvia!
after the two parties were refused entry into the Unity
alliance. The loose alliance was transformed into a unitary party on 23 July 2011. In the 2010 election to the Saeima
, the alliance won 8 seats. As part of the outgoing government it was involved in negotiations after the election to renew the coalition, but was vetoed by the Society for Other Politics
, which had not been part of the government but had joined the Unity
alliance.
In May 2011, the party supported the re-election of Valdis Zatlers
as President of Latvia in the 2011 election
. The alliance became a single united party on 23 July 2011. At the 2011 parliamentary election
, the National Alliance won fourteen seats – an increase of six on the previous year – making it the fourth-largest party. After extensive negotiations, it joined a centre-right government with Unity
and Zatlers' Reform Party
, with the party's Gaidis Bērziņš
as Minister for Justice and Žaneta Jaunzeme-Grende
as Minister for Culture.
Right-wing politics
In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
political party in Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
. With fourteen seats in the Saeima
Saeima
Saeima is the parliament of the Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the popular vote. Elections are scheduled to be held once every four years,...
, the National Alliance is the fourth-largest party in the legislature. The party is a coalition of conservatives
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
, Latvian ethnonationalists
Ethnic nationalism
Ethnic nationalism is a form of nationalism wherein the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity. Whatever specific ethnicity is involved, ethnic nationalism always includes some element of descent from previous generations and the implied claim of ethnic essentialism, i.e...
, and economic liberals
Economic liberalism
Economic liberalism is the ideological belief in giving all people economic freedom, and as such granting people with more basis to control their own lives and make their own mistakes. It is an economic philosophy that supports and promotes individual liberty and choice in economic matters and...
.
Formed as an electoral alliance
Electoral alliance
An electoral alliance may take the form of a bipartisan electoral agreement, electoral agreement, electoral coalition or electoral bloc. It is an association of political parties or individuals which exists solely to stand in elections...
for the 2010 election, the National Alliance brought together For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK and All for Latvia!
All For Latvia!
All For Latvia! was a nationalist political party in Latvia.All For Latvia! started as a political youth organization in 2000 and became a political party in January 2006, running in 2006 elections. It won 1.48% of vote and no seats in the parliament...
. It won eight seats, placing it fourth amongst all parties. It formed into a formalised political party in July 2011 under the leadership of Gaidis Bērziņš
Gaidis Bērziņš
Gaidis Bērziņš is a Latvian politician, lawyer, and university lecturer in law. He is currently the Minister for Justice of Latvia and co-chair of the National Alliance, along with Raivis Dzintars....
and Raivis Dzintars
Raivis Dzintars
Raivis Dzintars is a Latvian politician and journalist. He is currently the co-chair of the National Alliance, along with Gaidis Bērziņš....
. In the September 2011 election
Latvian parliamentary election, 2011
An early parliamentary election was held in Latvia on 17 September 2011, following the country's first parliamentary dissolution referendum held on 23 July 2011. The last parliamentary election was held only in October 2010....
, it increased its seats to fourteen, and it entered a centre-right
Centre-right
The centre-right or center-right is a political term commonly used to describe or denote individuals, political parties, or organizations whose views stretch from the centre to the right on the left-right spectrum, excluding far right stances. Centre-right can also describe a coalition of centrist...
coalition, along with Zatlers' Reform Party
Zatlers' Reform Party
The Zatlers' Reform Party is a centre-right political party in Latvia founded by the former President Valdis Zatlers on 23 July 2011. It has 22 seats in the Saeima, making it the second-largest party in the legislature....
and Unity
Unity (Latvia)
Unity is a Latvian centre-right political party, founded as an electoral alliance of the New Era Party, the Civic Union and the Society for Other Politics on 6 March 2010...
, under Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Latvia
The Prime Minister of Latvia is the most powerful member of the Government of the Republic of Latvia, and presides over the Latvian Cabinet of Ministers...
Valdis Dombrovskis
Valdis Dombrovskis
Valdis Dombrovskis is the Prime Minister of Latvia. He previously served as Latvia's Minister of Finance and as a Member of the European Parliament for the New Era Party.-Education and science career:...
.
History
It was founded as an electoral allianceElectoral alliance
An electoral alliance may take the form of a bipartisan electoral agreement, electoral agreement, electoral coalition or electoral bloc. It is an association of political parties or individuals which exists solely to stand in elections...
in 2010 by national-conservative For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK and far right All For Latvia!
All For Latvia!
All For Latvia! was a nationalist political party in Latvia.All For Latvia! started as a political youth organization in 2000 and became a political party in January 2006, running in 2006 elections. It won 1.48% of vote and no seats in the parliament...
after the two parties were refused entry into the Unity
Unity (Latvia)
Unity is a Latvian centre-right political party, founded as an electoral alliance of the New Era Party, the Civic Union and the Society for Other Politics on 6 March 2010...
alliance. The loose alliance was transformed into a unitary party on 23 July 2011. In the 2010 election to the Saeima
Saeima
Saeima is the parliament of the Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the popular vote. Elections are scheduled to be held once every four years,...
, the alliance won 8 seats. As part of the outgoing government it was involved in negotiations after the election to renew the coalition, but was vetoed by the Society for Other Politics
Society for Other Politics
The Society for Political Change , abbreviated to SCP, was a social liberal political party in Latvia founded on 6 September 2008. Its members include two former ministers, former foreign minister Artis Pabriks and former economics minister Aigars Štokenbergs; its first president was economist...
, which had not been part of the government but had joined the Unity
Unity (Latvia)
Unity is a Latvian centre-right political party, founded as an electoral alliance of the New Era Party, the Civic Union and the Society for Other Politics on 6 March 2010...
alliance.
In May 2011, the party supported the re-election of Valdis Zatlers
Valdis Zatlers
Valdis Zatlers is a Latvian politician and former physician who served as the seventh president of Latvia from 2007 to 2011. He won the Latvian presidential election of 31 May 2007...
as President of Latvia in the 2011 election
Latvian presidential election, 2011
Indirect presidential elections were held in Latvia on 2 June 2011. Incumbent president Valdis Zatlers was standing again, as well as Andris Bērziņš , a former head of SEB Unibanka ; Bērziņš was nominated by five Saeima members of the Union of Greens...
. The alliance became a single united party on 23 July 2011. At the 2011 parliamentary election
Latvian parliamentary election, 2011
An early parliamentary election was held in Latvia on 17 September 2011, following the country's first parliamentary dissolution referendum held on 23 July 2011. The last parliamentary election was held only in October 2010....
, the National Alliance won fourteen seats – an increase of six on the previous year – making it the fourth-largest party. After extensive negotiations, it joined a centre-right government with Unity
Unity (Latvia)
Unity is a Latvian centre-right political party, founded as an electoral alliance of the New Era Party, the Civic Union and the Society for Other Politics on 6 March 2010...
and Zatlers' Reform Party
Zatlers' Reform Party
The Zatlers' Reform Party is a centre-right political party in Latvia founded by the former President Valdis Zatlers on 23 July 2011. It has 22 seats in the Saeima, making it the second-largest party in the legislature....
, with the party's Gaidis Bērziņš
Gaidis Bērziņš
Gaidis Bērziņš is a Latvian politician, lawyer, and university lecturer in law. He is currently the Minister for Justice of Latvia and co-chair of the National Alliance, along with Raivis Dzintars....
as Minister for Justice and Žaneta Jaunzeme-Grende
Žaneta Jaunzeme-Grende
Žaneta Jaunzeme-Grende is a Latvian politician and businesswoman. She is a member of the National Alliance, and is the Minister for Culture in the current centre-right coalition government. She was President of the Latvian Chamber of Commerce from 2008 to 2011.She speaks Latvian, English, and...
as Minister for Culture.
Election results
| Election | Votes | Vote % | Seats | Place |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 74,028 | 7.7 | 8 | 4th |
| 2011 Latvian parliamentary election, 2011 An early parliamentary election was held in Latvia on 17 September 2011, following the country's first parliamentary dissolution referendum held on 23 July 2011. The last parliamentary election was held only in October 2010.... |
127,208 | 13.9 | 14 | 4th |