Prime Minister of Latvia

Prime Minister of the Republic of Latvia
Flag of the Prime Minister of Latvia
Incumbent Laimdota Straujuma since 22 January 2014
Appointer	President of Latvia
Term length	General elections to the Saeima are held every four years at most. The Prime Minister is by convention the leader of the victorious party. No term limits are imposed on the office.
Inaugural holder	Kārlis Ulmanis
Formation	19 November 1918

The Minister-President of Latvia (Latvian: Ministru prezidents) is the most powerful member of the Government of the Republic of Latvia, and presides over the Latvian Cabinet of Ministers. The Prime Minister is nominated by the President of Latvia, but must be able to obtain the support of a majority of Saeima (parliament).

The tables below display all Latvian Prime Ministers for both the first period when Latvia was independent (1918–1940) and since the country regained its independence (1990–present). From 1990 to 6 July 1993, the office was known as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, but is generally considered to have been the same role.

A direct translation of the official Latvian term is Minister-President. Although the equivalent is used in some European languages, it is not used conventionally in English.

Republic of Latvia (1918-1940)

Political Party:       LZS       Independent       MP       DC       PA       LJSP

No.	Portrait	Name (Born-Died)	Term of Office			Political Party	Cabinet		Saeima
			Took Office	Left Office	Days
1 (1 of 4)		Kārlis Ulmanis (1877–1942)	18 November 1918	13 July 1919		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	I	LZS – LNP – DC – DS	PC
			14 July 1919	8 December 1919			II	LZS – LŽNP DC joined later	PC ( ···· )
			9 December 1919	11 June 1920			III	LZS – LŽNP DS joined later	PC ( ···· )
			12 June 1920	18 June 1921			IV	LZS – DS – LDP DS exited later	CA (1920)
2 (1 of 2)		Zigfrīds Anna Meierovics (1887–1925)	19 June 1921	26 January 1923		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	I	LZS – DC – MP – LTP LTP exited later	CA ( ···· )
3		Jānis Pauļuks (1865–1937)	27 January 1923	27 June 1923		Independent	I	LZS – LSPDS – DC – LJS – MP	1 (1922)
2 (2 of 2)		Zigfrīds Anna Meierovics (1887–1925)	28 January 1923	26 January 1924		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	II	LZS – LSPDS – DC – LJS – MP	1 ( ···· )
4		Voldemārs Zāmuēls (1872–1948)	27 January 1924	18 December 1924		Independent	I	BNC – DC – LJS	1 ( ···· )
5 (1 of 2)		Hugo Celmiņš (1877–1941)	19 December 1924	23 December 1925		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	I	LZS – DC MP and LJS joined later	1 ( ···· )
1 (2 of 4)		Kārlis Ulmanis (1877–1942)	24 December 1925	6 May 1926		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	V	LZS – LJSP – LJS – LZP NA joined later	2 (1925)
6		Arturs Alberings (1877–1934)	7 May 1926	18 December 1926		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	I	LZS – DC – LJSP – LJS – LZP	2 ( ···· )
7 (1 of 2)		Marģers Skujenieks (1886–1941)	19 December 1926	23 January 1928		Mensheviks Party (MP)	I	LSDSP – MP – LPP – DC – LJS DC exited cabinet	2 ( ···· )
8		Pēteris Juraševskis (1872–1945)	24 January 1928	30 November 1928		Democratic Centre (DC)	I	LZS – DC – LZP – VRP / DbRP	2 ( ···· )
5 (2 of 2)		Hugo Celmiņš (1877–1941)	1 December 1928	26 March 1931		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	II	LZS – DC – LJSP – LDZA – LA – KNP – VRP / DbRP DC, KNP, VRP / DbRP exited cabinet	3 (1928)
1 (3 of 4)		Kārlis Ulmanis (1877–1942)	27 March 1931	5 December 1931		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	VI	LZS – LJSP – LDZA – NA – MKRA – LKZP – LPP	3 ( ···· )
7 (2 of 2)		Marģers Skujenieks (1886–1941)	6 December 1931	23 March 1933		Progressive Association of New Farmers (PA)	II	PA – DC – LZS – LZPA LJSP joined later	4 (1931)
9		Ādolfs Bļodnieks (1889–1962)	24 March 1933	16 March 1934		Party of New Farmers and Smallholders (LJSP)	I	LJSP – LZS – DC – LZPA – PA – LKKP – KDP DC, PA exited cabinet	4 ( ···· )
1 (4 of 4)		Kārlis Ulmanis (1877–1942)	17 March 1934	15 May 1934		Centre Party LATVIAN FARMERS' UNION (LZS)	VII	LZS – KA – LKKP – LPP – KDP	4 ( ···· )
			15 May 1934	19 June 1940		Independent	VIII	No party	Dis.
–		Augusts Kirhenšteins (1872–1963)	20 June 1940	25 August 1940		Independent	I	No party	Dis.

Notes

¹ During the 1918-1920 Independence War, Latvia was contested by two other governments: the government of Soviet Latvia, led by Pēteris Stučka, and the government of Andrievs Niedra, backed by Baltic Germans. Some sources may list Stučka and Niedra as prime ministers for periods when their governments controlled most of Latvia.

² On 15 May 1934, prime minister Ulmanis dissolved parliament and banned all political parties (including his own Farmer's Union), establishing authoritarian rule.

³ Puppet leader appointed by Soviet authorities. Not recognized as such by the Latvian government.

Republic of Latvia (1990–present)

From 4 May 1990 after adopting the Declaration of the Restoration of Independence of the Republic.

Political Party:       LTF       LC       Independent       TB/LNNK       TP       JL       LZP       LPP/LC       V

No.	Portrait	Name (Birth–Death)	Term of Office			Political Party	Cabinet		Saeima
			Took Office	Left Office	Days
1 (1 of 2)		Ivars Godmanis (1951–)	7 May 1990	3 August 1993		Popular Front of Latvia (LTF)	I	LTF LC joined later	SC (1990)
2		Valdis Birkavs (1942–)	3 August 1993	15 September 1994		Latvian Way (LC)	I	LC – LZS – LZP	5 (1993)
3		Māris Gailis (1951–)	15 September 1994	21 December 1995		Latvian Way (LC)	I	LC – TPA – LZS – LZP TB joined later and exited cabinet	5 ( ···· )
4 (1 of 2)		Andris Šķēle (1958–)	21 December 1995	13 February 1997		Independent	I	DP‘S’ – TB – LC – LNNK – LZS – LZP – LVP	6 (1995)
			13 February 1997	7 August 1997			II	DP‘S’ – TB – LC – LNNK – LZS – LZP KDS joined later	6 ( ···· )
5		Guntars Krasts (1957–)	7 August 1997	26 November 1998		For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK (TB/LNNK)	I	TB/LNNK – LC – LZS – LZP – DPS – KTP DPS and KTP exited cabinet	6 ( ···· )
6		Vilis Krištopans (1954–)	26 November 1998	16 July 1999		Latvian Way (LC)	I	LC – TB/LNNK – JP LSDSP joined later	7 (1998)
4 (2 of 2)		Andris Šķēle (1958–)	16 July 1999	5 May 2000		People's Party (TP)	III	TP – LC – TB/LNNK	7 ( ···· )
7		Andris Bērziņš (1951–)	5 May 2000	7 November 2002		Latvian Way (LC)	I	LC – TP – TB/LNNK – JP	7 ( ···· )
8		Einars Repše (1961–)	7 November 2002	9 March 2004		New Era Party (JL)	I	JL – TB/LNNK – LZS – LPP – LZP LPP exited cabinet	8 (2002)
9		Indulis Emsis (1952–)	9 March 2004	2 December 2004		Latvian Green Party (LZP)	I	TP – LPP – LZS – LZP	8 ( ···· )
10		Aigars Kalvītis (1966–)	2 December 2004	7 November 2006		People's Party (TP)	I	TP – JL – LZS – LPP – LZP JL exited cabinet	8 ( ···· )
			7 November 2006	20 December 2007			II	TP – LZS – LPP – TB/LNNK – LZP – LC	9 (2006)
1 (2 of 2)		Ivars Godmanis (1951–)	20 December 2007	12 March 2009		Latvia's First Party/Latvian Way (LPP/LC)	II	LPP/LC – TP – LZS – TB/LNNK – LZP	9 ( ···· )
11		Valdis Dombrovskis (1971–)	12 March 2009	3 November 2010		New Era Party (JL) JL later replaced by V	I	JL – TP – TB/LNNK – LZS – LZP – PS	9 ( ···· )
			3 November 2010	25 October 2011			II	JL – PS – SCP – LZS – LZP – LP JL, PS, SCP, LP later replaced by V	10 (2010)
			25 October 2011	22 January 2014		Party "UNITY" (V)	III	V – ZRP – NA	11 (2011)
12		Laimdota Straujuma (1951–)	22 January 2014	5 November 2014		Party "UNITY" (V)	I	V – RP – NA - LZS – LZP	11 ( ···· )
			5 November 2014				II	V – NA - LZS – LZP – LuV - LP	12 ( 2014)

Statistics

#	Prime Minister	Date of birth	Age at ascension (first term)	Time in office (total)	Age at retirement (last term)	Date of death	Longevity
1	Ulmanis, KārlisKārlis Ulmanis	18770904September 4, 1877(September 4, 1877)	41 07541 years, 75 days	09 3349 years, 334 days	62 28762 years, 287 days	19420920September 20, 1942	65 years, 16 days
2	Meierovics, ZigfrīdsZigfrīds Meierovics	18870206February 6, 1887(February 6, 1887)	34 13334 years, 133 days	02 0702 years, 70 days	36 35436 years, 354 days	19250822August 22, 1925	38 years, 197 days
3	Pauļuks, JānisJānis Pauļuks	18651112November 12, 1865(November 12, 1865)	57 07657 years, 76 days	00 1520 years, 152 days	57 22857 years, 228 days	19370621June 21, 1937	71 years, 221 days
4	Zāmuēls, VoldemārsVoldemārs Zāmuēls	18720522May 22, 1872(May 22, 1872)	51 25051 years, 250 days	00 3270 years, 327 days	52 21052 years, 210 days	19480116September 25, 1944	75 years, 239 days
5	Celmiņš, HugoHugo Celmiņš	18771030October 30, 1877(October 30, 1877)	47 05047 years, 50 days	03 1213 years, 121 days	53 14753 years, 147 days	19410730July 30, 1941	63 years, 273 days
6	Alberings, ArtursArturs Alberings	18760108January 8, 1876(January 8, 1876)	50 11950 years, 119 days	00 2260 years, 226 days	50 34550 years, 345 days	19340426April 26, 1934	58 years, 108 days
7	Skujenieks, MarģersMarģers Skujenieks	18860622June 22, 1886(June 22, 1886)	40 18040 years, 180 days	02 1452 years, 145 days	46 27446 years, 274 days	19410712July 12, 1941	55 years, 20 days
8	Juraševskis, PēterisPēteris Juraševskis	18720323March 23, 1872(March 23, 1872)	55 30755 years, 307 days	00 3120 years, 312 days	56 25256 years, 252 days	19450110January 10, 1945	72 years, 293 days
9	Blzodnieks, AzdolfsĀdolfs Bļodnieks	18890724July 24, 1889(July 24, 1889)	43 24343 years, 243 days	00 3580 years, 358 days	44 23544 years, 235 days	19620321March 21, 1962	72 years, 240 day
10	Kirhenšteins, AugustsAugusts Kirhenšteins	18720918September 18, 1872(September 18, 1872)	67 27667 years, 276 days	00 0660 years, 66 days	67 34267 years, 342 days	19631103November 11, 1963	91 years, 46 days
11	Godmanis, IvarsIvars Godmanis	19511127November 27, 1951(November 27, 1951)	38 16138 years, 161 days	04 1244 years, 124 days	57 10557 years, 105 days	Living	(Living)
12	Birkavs, ValdisValdis Birkavs	19420728July 28, 1942(July 28, 1942)	51 00651 years, 6 days	01 0431 year, 43 days	52 04952 years, 49 days	Living	(Living)
13	Gailis, MārisMāris Gailis	19510709July 9, 1951(July 9, 1951)	43 03743 years, 37 days	01 0971 year, 97 days	44 16544 years, 165 days	Living	(Living)
14	Szkzēle, AndrisAndris Šķēle	19580116January 16, 1958(January 16, 1958)	37 33937 years, 339 days	02 1592 years, 159 days	42 11042 years, 110 days	Living	(Living)
15	Krasts, GuntarsGuntars Krasts	19571016October 16, 1957(October 16, 1957)	39 29539 years, 295 days	01 1111 year, 111 days	41 04141 years, 51 days	Living	(Living)
16	Krisztopans, VilisVilis Krištopans	19540613June 13, 1954(June 13, 1954)	44 16644 years, 166 days	00 2320 years, 232 days	45 03345 years, 33 days	Living	(Living)
17	Bērziņš, AndrisAndris Bērziņš	19510804August 4, 1951(August 4, 1951)	48 27548 years, 275 days	02 1862 years, 186 days	51 09551 years, 95 days	Living	(Living)
18	Repše, EinarsEinars Repše	19611209December 9, 1961(December 9, 1961)	40 33340 years, 333 days	01 1231 year, 123 days	42 09142 years, 91 days	Living	(Living)
19	Emsis, IndulisIndulis Emsis	19520102January 2, 1952(January 2, 1952)	52 06752 years, 67 days	00 2680 years, 268 days	52 33552 years, 335 days	Living	(Living)
20	Kalvītis, AigarsAigars Kalvītis	19660627June 27, 1966(June 27, 1966)	38 15838 years, 158 days	03 0183 years, 18 days	41 17642 years, 91 days	Living	(Living)
21	Dombrovskis, ValdisValdis Dombrovskis	19710805August 5, 1971(August 5, 1971)	37 21937 years, 219 days	04 3164 years, 316 days	42 17042 years, 170 days	Living	(Living)
22	Straujuma, LaimdotaLaimdota Straujuma	19510224February 24, 1951(February 24, 1951)	62 33262 years, 332 days	01 080 (Ongoing)	Incumbent	Living	(Living)

See also

• Lists of office-holders

External links

• Official list from the Latvian Cabinet of Ministers