Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said her country faces a choice between the European mainstream or becoming an “isolated, bitter nation” under an increasingly popular far-right party less than eight weeks ahead of an election.
(Bloomberg) — Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said her country faces a choice between the European mainstream or becoming an “isolated, bitter nation” under an increasingly popular far-right party less than eight weeks ahead of an election.
Kallas’s liberal Reform Party is leading in popularity ahead of the March 5 contest with 32% backing, while the nationalist EKRE party is in second place with 24.6%, according to a Norstat poll. Led by former Finance Minister Martin Helme, EKRE repeatedly courted controversy during a brief stint in government three years ago with members’ racist and homophobic comments.
Kallas, 45, has buoyed Reform’s standing in the Baltic nation of 1.3 million with a hawkish line against Vladimir Putin and staunch backing for sending weapons to Ukraine. In an interview with Estonian Public Broadcasting this week, the premier rejected any cooperation with EKRE, calling the choice one of anchoring Estonia’s identity.
“Are we a friendly, progressive, pro-Western, innovative, smart country — or are we a closed, embittered, small country,” Kallas said, adding that EKRE would drop aid to Ukraine and support for refugees in Estonia.
EKRE’s father-and-son leadership duo upended Estonian politics when they were sworn into government in 2019, apparently flashing a white power hand signal. Mart Helme, the father, resigned his cabinet post in 2020 after calling US President Joe Biden’s election victory into question.
Martin Helme, 46, once triggered a storm of criticism when he said Black people in Estonia should be “shown the door.”
Despite the controversy, EKRE has maneuvered into second place, edging out factions including the moderate Centre Party under former Prime Minister Juri Ratas. Kallas abandoned her coalition with Ratas last year amid political infighting, at one point demanding Ratas “be a man” and call a parliamentary confidence vote.
She cobbled together a new three-way alliance in July with Estonia’s Social Democrats and the center-right Fatherland party, once known as Pro Patria. Even as she maintains her lead in the polls, the nation’s coalition math may make it difficult for her to secure a stable government.
“This election is going to be pretty tough. It is not just a question of who wins the election – which I have clearly experienced – but who can form the government,” Kallas told Estonian Public Broadcasting.
The Centre Party had 15.5% in the Norstat poll, while Fatherland and the Social Democrats had 7.4% and 6.7% support respectively. The liberal Estonia 200 had 9.8%. The poll, which was conducted Dec. 6 to Jan. 9 and surveyed 4,000 people, has a margin of error of 0.9%.
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