All news
Estonia fails to deprive Russians of the right to vote in local elections
Estonia is behind schedule in adopting amendments to the law that will deprive citizens of third countries, including Russians, of the right to vote in local elections.
He said the bill proposed by Isa Madang passed the first reading but was shelved without the support of all political parties within the ruling coalition.
Sider believes it is unlikely that he will prepare a legislative framework to prohibit Russians from voting in the 2025 elections, given “disagreements with the prosecutor general and the president in the process of legal discussions.”
Isama said he would seek to pass such a ban in the 2029 local elections.
Local elections in Estonia are held every four years. The next elections are scheduled for October 19, 2025.
Last year, Estonia drafted a law that would deprive Russians of the right to vote in local elections. The ban was planned to be extended to Belarusian citizens as well.
And former Estonian Foreign Minister and leader of the Pro Patria Party Urmas Reinsalu called on the European Parliament to ban Russians in the European Union from voting in the presidential elections in the Russian Federation. It was impossible to impose a ban. In Tallinn, it was necessary to allow the opening of polling stations on the territory of the Russian embassy.
The Estonian authorities also failed to impose a complete ban on land transport links with Russia from the EU and, after a three-month break, began to reissue permits for transport companies to transport goods to the Russian Federation.