{ Adopted: 15 Feb 1922 / Status: 15 Feb 1922 }
Article 1 [Democratic Republic]
Latvia shall be an independent democratic Republic.
Article 2 [Popular Sovereignty]
The sovereign power of the Latvian State shall belong to the
People of Latvia.
Article 3 [Territory]
The territory of the Latvian State shall consist of Livonia,
Latgale, Courland, and Zemgale, within the boundaries
stipulated by international treaties.
Article 4 [Flag]
The national flag of the Latvian State shall be red with a white
stripe.
Article 5 [Size]
The Parliament
Article 6 [Election]
The Parliament shall be elected by universal, equal, direct, and
secret vote, on the basis of proportional representation.
Article 7 [Electoral Districts]
Latvia being divided into separate electoral districts, the number
of parliamentary representatives to be elected from each district
shall be proportionate to the number of electors in that district.
Article 8 [Right to Vote]
Latvian citizens of both sexes, who are in possession of all
rights and who are over twenty-one years of age on the first
day of polling, shall have the right to vote.
Article 9 [Eligibility]
Any Latvian citizen who is over twenty-one years of age on the
first day of voting, may be elected
Article 10 [Term]
The Parliament shall be elected for a period of three years.
Article 11 [Regular Elections]
The parliamentary elections shall take place on the first Sunday
in October and on the preceding Saturday.
Article 12 [First Sitting]
The newly-elected Parliament shall hold its first sitting on the
first Tuesday in November, on which day the powers of the
previous Parliament shall have expired.
Article 13 [Dissolution]
Should the parliamentary election, by reason of the dissolution
of the previous Parliament, take place at another season of the
year, the Parliament thus elected shall assemble not later than
one month after its election, and its powers shall expire after
two years, on the first Tuesday in November, on which day a
new Parliament shall assemble.
Article 14 [Representative Mandate]
The electors may not recall any Members of the Parliament.
Article 15 [Place of Assembly]
The Parliament shall assemble in Riga. It may assemble
elsewhere only in extraordinary circumstances.
Article 16 [Board]
The Parliament shall elect its Board, which shall consist of the
President, his two Deputies and Secretaries. The Board of the
Parliament shall carry on its work uninterrupted throughout the
duration of the legislative period.
Article 17 [Opening of First Sitting]
The first sitting of the newly-elected Parliament shall be opened
by the President of the preceding Parliament or by any other
member of the Board charged by the Board.
Article 18 [Examining Mandates]
The Parliament itself shall examine the mandates of its
members.
Article 19 [Sessions, Sittings]
The Board shall convene sessions and decree ordinary and
extraordinary sitting.
Article 20 [Convokation]
The Board shall convoke a sitting of the Parliament at the
request of either the President of the State, the Prime Minister,
or not less than one-third of the Members of the Parliament.
Article 21 [Standing Orders]
The Parliament shall draw up the Standing Orders for the
regulation of its activities and its internal procedure.
Article 22 [Publicity]
The sitting of the Parliament shall be public. At the request of
ten Members of the Parliament, the President of the State, the
Prime Minister or any one Minister, the Parliament may decide,
by a majority of not less than two-thirds of the members
present, to sit in camera.
Article 23 [Quorum]
The sittings of the Parliament may take place if at least one-half
of the members are present.
Article 24 [Majority]
Except in cases otherwise provided for by the Constitution, the
Parliament shall pass its resolutions by the absolute majority
vote of the members present.
Article 25 [Committees]
The Parliament shall elect Committees, determine the number
of their members and their duties. The Committees shall be
entitled to request the respective Ministers and Local
Authorities to supply any information necessary for their work,
and also to invite responsible representatives of the respective
Ministries and Local Authorities to their meetings, for the
purpose of obtaining explanations. The Committees may carry
on their work between the Sessions.
Article 26 [Enquiry Committees]
At the request of not less than one-third of its members, the
Parliament shall appoint parliamentary Enquiry Committees to
deal with special cases.
Article 27 [Interpellation]
The Parliament shall have the right to address to the Prime
Minister, or to any other Minister, interpellations or questions
to which they, or responsible officials empowered by them,
shall reply. At the request of either the Parliament or its
Committees, the Prime Minister, or any other Minister, shall
place at their disposal relevant papers and documents.
Article 28 [Indemnity]
The Members of the Parliament shall be exempt from judicial,
administrative and disciplinary prosecution, in connection with
their voting and with ideas expressed in the execution of their
duties. Member of the Parliament, even in their public capacity,
are liable to prosecution, if
1) they wilfully spread defamatory information, or
2) they spread defamatory information about private or family
life.
Article 29 [Immunity Against Arrest and Search]
Members of the Parliament may not be arrested or searched,
nor may their personal liberty be restricted in any way, without
the sanction of the Parliament. Members of the Parliament shall
be liable to arrest if apprehended in the act of committing a
crime. The arrest of a Member of the Parliament shall be
brought to the notice of the Board of the Parliament within
twenty-four hours. A report shall be presented by the Board at
the next sitting of the Parliament, whereupon the Parliament
shall decide as to whether the member shall be retained under
arrest or liberated. During the period between the sessions, the
Board of the Parliament shall decide the question of the
retention under arrest of a Member of the Parliament.
Article 30 [Immunity]
A Member of the Parliament shall not be liable to judicial or
administrative prosecution for criminal actions, without the
consent of the Parliament.
Article 31 [Right to Withhold Evidence]
The Member of the Parliament shall have the right to withhold
evidence:
1) concerning persons who have entrusted him, as a
Representative of the People, certain facts or data;
2) concerning persons to whom he, as a Representative of the
People, has entrusted certain facts or data;
3) concerning such facts and data.
Article 32 [Restrictions]
Members of the Parliament may not undertake Government
Contract or receive Government concessions in their name or in
that of any other person. The stipulations of this Article shall
refer to Ministers, even if they are not members of the
Parliament.
Article 33 [Remuneration]
Members of the Parliament shall receive remuneration from
State funds.
Article 34 [Publicity of Reports]
No person shall be prosecuted for circulating reports about
sittings of the Parliament or its Committees, if such reports
correspond to facts. Accounts of sittings in camera, of either
the Parliament or its Committees, may only be published with
the sanction of the Board of either the Parliament or the
respective Committees.
Article 35 [Term]
The President of the State
Article 36 [Election]
The President of the State shall be elected by secret ballot with
a majority of not less than fifty-one votes.
Article 37 [Eligibility]
No person who is under forty years of age may be elected
President of the State.
Article 38 [Incompatibility]
The office of President of the State shall not be compatible with
any other office. If the elected President be a member of the
Parliament, he shall resign his membership.
Article 39 [Consecutive Years]
The same person cannot hold office as President of the State for
more than six consecutive years.
Article 40 [Oath]
On assuming office at the first meeting of the Parliament after
his election, the President of the State shall make the following
solemn declaration:
"I swear that all my work shall be devoted to the good of the
Latvian people. I will do everything in my power to promote the
welfare of the State of Latvia and its inhabitants. I will heed
and keep sacred the Constitution of Latvia and its laws. I will
be just to everyone and will fulfill my duties to the best of my
ability."
Article 41 [Functions]
The President of the State shall represent the State in an
international capacity: he shall accredit Latvian representatives
abroad, and receive accredited representatives of foreign States.
He shall carry out the decisions of the Parliament concerning
the ratification of international treaties.
Article 42 [Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces]
The President of the State shall be the chief of the Armed
Forces
Article 43 [Declaration of War]
The President of the State shall declare war on the strength of
the decision of the Parliament.
Article 44 [Defense]
The President of the State shall have the right to take steps
indispensable to the military defense of the country if another
State shall have declared war on Latvia, or if the enemy shall
be attacking Latvian frontiers. At the same time, the President
of the State shall immediately convoke the Parliament, which
shall decide upon the declaration of war and opening of
hostilities.
Article 45 [Pardon]
The President of the State shall have the right to pardon
criminals undergoing penal sentences. This right of pardon shall
not refer to cases for which the Law provides a different mode
of pardon. Amnesty shall be granted by the Parliament.
Article 46 [Convokation of Parliament]
The President of the State shall have the right to convoke
extraordinary meetings of the Cabinet for the discussion of an
agenda prepared by him, and to preside over such meetings.
Article 47 [Legislative Initiative]
The President of the State shall have the right of legislative
initiative.
Article 48 [Dissolution of Parliament]
The President of the State shall have the right to propose the
dissolution of the Parliament. This shall be followed by a
referendum. If in the referendum more than one-half of the
votes are cast in favour of dissolution, the Parliament shall be
considered as dissolved and new elections shall be proclaimed.
These elections shall take place within two months of the
dissolution of the Parliament.
Article 49 [Continuous Parliament]
On the dissolution of the Parliament, its members shall retain
their powers until the newly-elected Parliament shall have
assembled. The former Parliament may only assemble on being
convoked by the President of the State, who shall draw up
agenda for its sitting.
Article 50 [Failed Dissolution, Resignation of President]
If the dissolution of the Parliament is opposed by more than
one-half of the votes cast when the referendum is taken, the
President of the State shall be considered as having resigned,
and the Parliament shall elect a new President of the State for
the duration of the unexpired of office of the President who has
resigned.
Article 51 [Dismissal]
On the motion of not less than one-half of the Members of the
Parliament, the Parliament, at the sitting to which the public is
not admitted, may decide by a majority of not less than
two-thirds of their number, to dismiss the President of the
State. After this decision, the Parliament shall immediately elect
a new President of the State.
Article 52 [Resignation]
Should the President of the State resign his office, die or be
dismissed before the expiry of his term of office, the duties
shall be carried out by the President of the Parliament, pending
the election of a new President of the State. Likewise the
President of the Parliament shall take the place of the President
of the State, should the latter be absent from Latvian territory,
or in any other way prevented from exercising his functions.
Article 53 [Responsibility]
The President of the State shall not be held responsible for his
activities. All decrees of the President of the state shall be
countersigned by the Prime Minister, or by the Minister
concerned, who shall thereby assume full responsibility for the
decrees, except in cases foreseen by Articles forty-eight and
fifty-six.
Article 54 [Immunity]
The President of the State may be prosecuted for criminal
offences with the sanction of the Parliament, by a majority of
not less than two-thirds of its members.
Article 55 [Members]
The Cabinet
Article 56 [Formation]
The Cabinet shall be formed by a person entrusted who that
task by the President of the State.
Article 57 [Size]
The number of Ministers and the scope of their activities, as the
mutual relations of Government Departments shall be fixed by
Law.
Article 58 [Head of Administration]
The administrative institutions shall be subordinated to the
Cabinet.
Article 59 [Confidence of Parliament, Responsibility]
In the execution of their functions, the Prime Minister and
Ministers shall by necessity enjoy the confidence of the
Parliament and shall be responsible to the Parliament for their
activities. Should the Parliament defeat the vote of confidence
in the Prime Minister, the whole Cabinet shall resign. Should
the Parliament defeat the vote of confidence in any particular
Minister, that Minister shall resign and the Prime Minister shall
invite another person to take his place.
Article 60 [Presidency Over Meetings]
The meetings of the Cabinet shall be presided over by the
Prime Minister, or, in his absence, by another Minister so
empowered by the Prime Minister.
Article 61 [Discussion]
The cabinet shall discuss all Bills drawn up by the separate
Ministries and all questions concerning the activities of various
ministries; likewise all questions of State policy, put forward by
individual members of the Cabinet.
Article 62 [Foreign Invasion]
If the State be threatened by foreign invasion, or, if in the State
or part thereof, disorders endangering the existing order of the
State arise, the Cabinet shall have the right to proclaim a state
of enforced defence. The Cabinet shall notify such a
proclamation of the Board the Parliament within twenty-four
hours, and the Board shall put it before the Parliament without
delay.
Article 63 [Initiative of Ministers]
Ministers, even if they are not Members of the Parliament, and
responsible State officials empowered by Ministers, shall have
the right to be present at the sittings of the Parliament or its
Committees, and to introduce additions and amendments to
Bills.
Article 64 [Right to Legislation]
The right of legislation
Article 65 [Initiative]
Bills may be presented to the Parliament by the President of the
State, the Cabinet, the Committees of the Parliament, not less
than five Members of the Parliament or, in cases and in a
manner provided for in this Constitution, by one-tenth of the
electors.
Article 66 [Budget]
(1) Before the commencement of each financial year, the
Parliament shall pronounce on the State Revenue and
Expenditure Budget
(2) If the Parliament pass a resolution involving expenditure not
foreseen in the Budget, it shall likewise specify in this
resolution the sources of revenue with which to meet such
expenditure. After the expiry of the financial year, the Cabinet
shall submit, for the confirmation of the Parliament, a statement
showing the actual realisation of the Budget.
Article 67 [Armed Forces]
The Parliament shall decide on the strength of the armed forces
of the State in time of peace.
Article 68 [Ratification of International Agreements]
The ratification of the Parliament shall be indispensable to all
international agreements dealing with questions to be settled by
legislation.
Article 69 [Promulgation]
The President of the State shall promulgate laws passed by the
Parliament not before the seventh and not later than twenty-first
day after their adoption. If no other term be fixed, the laws
shall come into force fourteen days after their promulgation.
Article 70 [Formula of Promulgation]
The President of the State shall promulgate laws by means of
the following formula:
"The Parliament (or the People) have adopted and the
President of the State promulgates the following law: ... ."
Article 71 [Request for Revision]
Within seven days of the adoption of a law by the Parliament,
the President of the State shall be entitled to ask, by means of
explanatory letter addressed to the President of the Parliament,
for the revision of that law. If the Parliament leave the law
unaltered, the President of the State shall not have the right to
raise any further objections.
Article 72 [Withholding Promulgation]
The President of the State shall have the right to withhold the
promulgation of a law for a period of two months. He shall
postpone the promulgation at the request of not less than
one-third of the Members of the Parliament. This right shall be
exercised by the President of the State or by one-third of the
Members of the Parliament within seven days of the adoption of
the law by the Parliament. The law, the promulgation of which
has been thus postponed, shall be submitted to a referendum, if
not less than one-tenth of the electors so desire. Should such
request not be formulated within the period of two months as
mentioned above, the law shall be promulgated at the expiry of
that period. The referendum shall not be taken, however, if the
Parliament put this law to the vote once more and if then not
less than three-fourths of all the members be in favour of its
adoption.
Article 73 [Matters Excluded from Referendum]
The following matters shall not be submitted to a referendum:
the budget, laws concerning loans, taxes, custom's duties,
railway tariffs, military service, the declaration and
commencement of war, the conclusion of peace, the
promulgation of a state of enforced defence termination,
mobilisation, demobilisation, foreign treaties.
Article 74 [Annullment by Referendum]
A law adopted by the Parliament and postponed in the manner
set forth in Article 72, may be annulled by a referendum, if
at least one-half of those who have the right to vote shall take
part in the suffrage.
Article 75 [Urgency]
Should the Parliament adopt the urgency of a law with a
majority of not less than two-thirds, the President of the State
may not demand a second examination of the law; it may not be
submitted to a referendum and shall be promulgated within
three days of its transmission to the President.
Article 76 [Amendment of the Constitution]
The Parliament may modify the Constitution at sittings at which
at least two-thirds of its members shall be present. The
modification shall be passed in the course of three readings, by
a majority of not less than two thirds of the members present.
Article 77 [Referendum About Amendment]
If the Parliament has modified Articles 1, 2, 3, or
6 of the Constitution, such amendments, in order to
acquire the force of Law, shall be submitted to a referendum.
Article 78 [Amendment by Popular Initiative]
Not less then one-tenth of the electors shall have the right to
submit to the President of the State a fully elaborated scheme
for the revision of the Constitution, or a Bill, which shall be
submitted to the Parliament by the President. Should it not be
accepted by the Parliament without substantial amendments, it
shall be submitted to a referendum.
Article 79 [Referendum After Popular Initiative]
Such amendments to the Constitution as shall have been
submitted to a referendum shall be adopted if at least one-half
of those who have the right to vote shall have declared
themselves in their favour.
Article 80 [Right to Vote in Referendum]
All Latvian citizens who have the right to vote in the election of
the Parliament are entitled to take part in the referendum.
Article 81 [Regulations by Cabinet]
In cases of urgent necessity between session, the Cabinet shall
have the right to issue regulations which shall have the force of
Law. These regulations shall not modify: the law of election to
the Parliament, laws bearing on judicial constitution and
procedure, the budget rights, and laws passed by the Parliament
then in power; they shall not refer to amnesty, the issue of
Treasury notes, State taxes, custom's duties, railway tariffs,
loans and they shall be annulled if not presented to the
Parliament within three days of the opening of the following
session.
Article 82 [Equality of Citizens]
All citizens shall be equal before the Law and the Courts
Article 83 [Independence of Judges]
The judges shall be independent
Article 84 [Appointment of Judges]
The appointment of judges shall be confirmed by the Parliament
and they may not be dismissed. Judges may not be dismissed
from their office against their will, unless it be the decision of
the Courts of Justice. The retiring age limit for judges may be
fixed by Law.
Article 85 [Trial Jury]
Trial by jury shall exist in Latvia in accordance with a special
Law.
Article 86 [Rule of Law]
Justice shall be administered solely by such institutions as shall
have been so entitled by Law and in such a manner as shall
have been specified by Law. The Courts Martial shall function
in accordance with a special law.
Article 87 [Independence]
The state control shall be an independent collegiate institution.
Article 88 [Appointment]
The State Controllers shall be appointed and confirmed in the
same manner as the judges, but only for a definite period.
During the period their appointment shall not be revoked,
except by the decision of the Courts of Justice. The organisation
of the State Control and the competency thereof shall be fixed
by a special law.