Rahvaliit

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article or the following section is not adequately provided with supporting documents ( e.g. individual evidence ). Information without sufficient evidence could be removed soon. Please help Wikipedia by researching the information and including good evidence.
Former logo of the Estonian People's Union

The Estonian People's Union (Estonian Eestimaa Rahvaliit - ERL ) was a conservative- agrarian party in Estonia from 2000 to 2012 . She has not been represented in parliament since 2011. In 2012 it merged with the right-wing populist “Estonian National Movement” ( Eesti Rahvuslik Liikumine ) to form the “ Estonian Conservative People's Party ” ( Eesti Konservatiivne Rahvaerakond ).

Electorate and program

The People's Union was a rural and agriculturally oriented party that found its supporters especially outside the larger cities and within the poorer sections of the population. Although it also contained nationalist elements, it also found favor with the Russian-speaking population of Estonia. The People's Union has long been the party with the largest number of members in Estonia.

The party campaigned for the social rights of the Estonian rural population. Strengthening local self-government and the principle of subsidiarity were the foundations of their regional policy. She advocated a balance between economic and environmental interests in the agricultural sector.

Although she tends to be Eurosceptic , she was a clear supporter of Estonia's membership in the European Union during the referendum on EU membership in September 2003 . But she belonged to the Alliance for a Europe of Nations .

history

The Estonian People's Union was founded on October 18, 1999 as an association of the three parties Eesti Pensionäride ja Perede Erakond - EPPE ("Party of Estonian Pensioners and Family"; center-left spectrum, founded in 1991), Eesti Maarahva Erakond - EME ("Party of Estonian Landvolks "; Peasant Party , founded in 1994) and Eesti Maaliit - EML (" Estonian Land Union "; rural-oriented party; founded 1991) officially launched. In January 2003 the small party Erakond Uus Eesti - UE ("New Estonia Party") , founded in 1996, joined the People's Union.

Personalities

Formative personalities of the Estonian People's Union were in particular Arnold Rüütel (* 1928), who was chairman of the Eesti Maarahva Erakond (EME) from 1994 to 2000 . Rüütel was elected President of Estonia in October 2001 . In the summer of 2006, he narrowly lost to his social democratic challenger Toomas Hendrik Ilves in the presidential election .

According to Rüütel, Villu Reiljan (* 1953) dominated the image of the party. The forestry graduate had already gained experience as Estonian environment minister from 1995 to 1997. From 2003 to 2006 Reiljan was again Environment Minister.

Reiljan took political responsibility for the party's poor performance in the 2007 general election and resigned. His successor as party chairman in April 2007 was Jaanus Marrandi , who was Estonian Minister of Agriculture in 2002/2003.

In autumn 2008 a dispute broke out in the party over the realignment of content. On November 1, 2008, the parliamentary group leader Karel Rüütli (* 1978) was able to assert himself as the new chairman at a party congress. He did not succeed in reconciling the quarreling camps. In 2010 he had to give up his office, also in the face of poor election success.

elections

In the 1995 parliamentary elections , the joint list formed by the five parties Koonderakond , Eesti Maarahva Erakond, Eesti Maaliit, Eesti Pensionäride ja Perede Erakond and Põllumeeste Kogu received the Valimisliit Koonderakond ja Maarahva Ühendus (KMÜ) (“electoral alliance of the coalition party and rural people”) 32% . It reached 41 of the 101 seats in parliament ( Riigikogu ) and was by far the strongest parliamentary group. The electoral bloc was involved in government in the following three cabinets of Prime Ministers Tiit Vähi ( Cabinet Vähi II , Cabinet Vähi III ) and Mart Siimann ( Cabinet Siimann I ) from 1995 to 1999.

At the parliamentary elections in 1999 , the electoral alliance split up. The Eesti Maarahva Erakond received (together with the Eesti Maaliit ) only seven mandates, the Koonderakond (together with the EPPE) also received seven. The parties went into opposition.

After the party merger and the dissolution of the coalition party , the Estonian People's Union, founded in 2000, achieved good results in the 2003 parliamentary elections and won thirteen seats. From 2003 to 2007 the Estonian People's Union was involved in the government in the cabinets of Prime Ministers Juhan Parts ( Cabinet Parts I ) and Andrus Ansip ( Cabinet Ansip I ).

She suffered heavy losses in the 2007 parliamentary elections . With 7.1% of the vote and seven MPs, it was the smallest faction in the Riigikogu . The Estonian People's Union again went into opposition.

The decline of the party began with the withdrawal of long-time party leader Villu Reiljan in 2007. In autumn 2008 the young Karel Rüütli was elected as the new chairman. In 2009, the discussion about a possible unification of the party with the Estonian Social Democrats split leadership and membership. In the European elections in the same year, the party received only 2.2% of the vote. In May 2010, the party leader Karel Rüütli resigned and switched to the Social Democrats independently.

In the 2011 parliamentary elections , the People's Union clearly failed to make it into parliament with just 2.1% of the vote. The party was divided internally and showed tendencies towards dissolution. In 2012, the party was part of the right-wing populist Estonian Conservative People's Party ( Eesti Konservatiivne Rahvaerakond ).

Election results

Results in the parliamentary elections
year be right proportion of Mandates space
2003 64,463 13.0%
13/101
 4th
2007 39,215 7.1%
6/101
 6th
2011 12.184 2.1%
0/101
 6th
Results in the European elections
year be right proportion of Mandates space
2004 18,687 8.1%
0/6
 5.
2009 8,860 2.2%
0/6
 8th.

Chairperson