Political outline

Executive Power

The President is the chief of the state and is elected by parliament for a five-year term. The President is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. He/she nominates the Prime Minister after approval by parliament (generally leader of the majority party or coalition), for a 4 year term. Prime Minister is the head of the government and also holds the executive powers which include implementation of the law in the country and running the day-to-day affairs. The Council of Ministers is appointed by the Prime Minister, approved by parliament.

Legislative Power

The legislature in Estonia is unicameral. The parliament called State Assembly has 101 seats with its members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. The State Assembly is the highest organ of statal authority. It initiates and approves legislation sponsored by the Prime Minister. The government is directly or indirectly dependent on the support of the parliament, often expressed through a vote of confidence. The government cannot dissolve the parliament but can recommend the same to President who has to take parliament into confidence before taking a decision.The citizens of Estonia enjoy considerable political rights. Estonia is among the world's leaders in e-governance and features an impressively transparent system in which government decisions are almost instantly made available on the Internet.
The Judiciary is independent in Estonia, and generally free from government influence. The main source of the law is the Constitution of June 1992. The legal system is based on civil law system. No judicial review of legislative acts takes place in the country. Estonia being a member of the European Union, the national law in the country needs to comply with the conditions of the Community legislation. Estonia accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, but with reservations.

Main political parties

Estonia has a multi-party system, with numerous parties in which no party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and thus parties must work with each other to form coalition governments. The major parties in the country are:
- Estonian Centre Party (this party has been represented in all five assemblies after Estonia regained its independence)
- Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica (it is a right-wing conservative party),
- Estonian Reform Party (it is made up of 31 members at the parliament and is the largest faction represented; it promotes liberal values)
- People's Union of Estonia (this party bases its value on patriotism, education and family).

 

For some information about political parties, the following website of the Parliament should be visited: http://www.riigikogu.ee.

Current political leaders

President: Toomas Hendrik ILVES (since October 2006)
Prime Minister: Andrus ANSIP (since April 2007)

Next election dates

Presidential: September 2011
State Assembly: Year 2011