November data in

I am back from Glasgow where the Department of Central and East European Studies organized a nice and well attended conference. Actually it was a relaxing feeling to be outside of the present political realm and instead focus on the future while looking back on the Latvia´s last ninety years. On the way back from Copenhagen learned in the Saturday papers that the Harmony Centre Party (SC) held its congress in Riga, where they presented the shadow cabinet in case government should fall. Also, it seems that the president pushing the Saeima has started in earnest, if the election campaign organizer Gundars Bērziņš from the People's Party (TP) took a word, again... . His style was `Latvian macho style` and ludicrous in the same time and even TP ministers tried to avoid to be associated with him.

It is Monday morning now and prior heading to university skimmed through the morning papers. Diena reported monthly data about the popularity of political parties. The question presented in the pollster is: "if the elections would take place tomorrow, which party you would vote for"?






From the existing governing coalition gang all but the Union of Greens & Farmers (ZZS) would stay out of the parliament, because they would not be able to cross the 5% entry threshold. Out of twenty or so Latvian parties only SC and ZZS would get in the parliament now, and the sheer size of alienated and undecided voters signals that there is a place for new kids on the block, if formed by some billionaire are maverick. Relative unpopularity of the existing political parties shows the trend that started in March 2007. It is a shame for the existing government and it is comic that they blame global economic slowdown and problems of their public relations campaigns, and do not understand internal causes for such an utter lack of trust in exiting political establishment. Interesting how long would the relative status quo hold?