Harmony: Latvian Democracy at Russia's Doorstep

Elections, democracy, and foreign influence in Latvia.

In October 2018, the Baltic nation of Latvia went to the polls to elect a new government. In a country situated on the eastern edge of the European Union along the border with Russia, the Latvian campaign was waged against the backdrop of external influence and domestic discord. As in many other western democracies, malign foreign actors used disinformation campaigns to stoke internal divisions with the aim of undermining stability. Though Latvia was not immune to this plague, its history allowed it to inoculate itself from some of the worst symptoms and carry out the election on the bread and butter issues that are common across the EU: jobs, education, and the economy.