Estonian parliamentary election, 2003

Estonian parliamentary election, 2003

1999 ← 2 March 2003 → 2007

101 seats in the Riigikogu 51 seats were needed for a majority   First party Second party Third party   Leader Edgar Savisaar Juhan Parts Siim Kallas Party Centre Res Publica Reform Last election 28 seats did not participate 18 seats Seats won 28 28 19 Seat change ±0 28 1 Popular vote 125,709 121,856 87,551 Percentage 25.40% 24.62% 17.69%

Prime Minister before election Siim Kallas Reform Elected Prime Minister Juhan Parts Res Publica

Siim Kallas
Reform

Juhan Parts
Res Publica

Parliamentary elections were held in Estonia on 2 March 2003. Two opposing parties won the most seats, with both the Centre Party and Res Publica Party winning 28 seats in the Riigikogu. Res Publica was able to gain enough support in negotiations after the elections to form a coalition government.

Before the elections the government of Estonia was a coalition of the centre-right Estonian Reform Party and the more left-wing Centre Party, with Siim Kallas from the Reform Party of Estonia as Prime Minister. On 26 November 2002 the President of Estonia, Arnold Rüütel, set 2 March 2003 as the election date. 947 candidates from 11 political parties contested the election as well as 16 independents.

Opinion polls showed the Centre Party led by the mayor of Tallinn, Edgar Savisaar, with a small lead in the run up to the election. They were expected to gain support from among those who had not benefited from the rapid economic reforms that had taken place over the last decade. However their populism and their lack of a clear policy on whether Estonia should join the European Union meant they were likely to struggle to form a coalition after the election.

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