Baltic States – CIS, Latvia, Legislation

In his petition, Kuzins is asking the court to overturn the Election Commission's November 1 decision.

As reported, the Central Election Commission decided on November 1 that the second round of signature collection for staging the so-called "non-citizen referendum" would not be organized because the draft bill amending the Citizenship Law was not "formulated fully."

The other reasons why the referendum will not be held – the bill is not in line with Article 2 of the Constitution and the May 4 Declaration on the Restoration of Independence of the Republic of Latvia. Also, the bill will increase the number of Latvia's citizens significantly and pose a threat to the principle of continuity of the State of Latvia.

Six commission members voted against the bill, while two members – Aleksandrs Malcevs representing Harmony Center and Ieva Gruzina representing the Reform Party – voted for continuing the referendum initiation procedure.