Estonia Pushes to Exclude Russian and Belarusian Residents From Voting in Local Elections

Estonia's coalition government announced its intention to amend the constitution to bar Russian and Belarusian residents from participating in next year's municipal elections. This move aims to safeguard against potential interference from Moscow and Minsk.

This was stated by Prime Minister Kristen Michal to the state broadcaster ERR on November 4.

"We agreed in the coalition council to recommend our parliamentary groups urgently amend the constitution so that citizens of aggressor states will no longer have a say in local elections," Michal said.

Permanent residents of Estonia currently hold a constitutional right to vote in local elections within their respective constituencies. 

Since the onset of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, various Estonian political parties have proposed barring Russians, Belarusians, and, in some cases, stateless residents from voting, citing concerns over potential foreign interference.

The coalition government aims to expedite constitutional changes to ensure "that the citizens of the aggressor states and the stateless persons couldn't vote at the municipal elections next October," said Helir-Valdor Seeder, head of the Isamaa parliamentary faction, in a statement.

A draft amendment could be completed as soon as November 7.

Moldova has accused Russian authorities of attempting to interfere in its recent presidential election and EU membership referendum. Officials claimed that Russia plans to bus in voters to the Moldovan Embassy in Moscow to sway the results, aiming to manipulate the outcome of the elections.

Peter Stano, spokesperson for the European Union’s foreign policy service, stated that the first round of presidential elections in Moldova occurred amid unprecedented Russian interference.