Sutrop: We shouldn't know before Estonia's presidential vote who has 68 votes
Estonian MP Margit Sutrop has criticized the idea that party leaders should agree in advance on a presidential candidate with a guaranteed majority. She argues this would undermine both the point of the election and MPs' free mandate.
During a discussion on Estonia's presidential election held at the Opinion Festival, Isamaa party chairman Urmas Reinsalu spoke of a lack of political maturity, suggesting that the Riigikogu's Council of Elders should convene to find a candidate who could secure sufficiently broad agreement among parties.
Riigikogu member Margit Sutrop pushed back against this approach, stressing that it is the Riigikogu, not the Council of Elders, that elects the president. The Council of Elders includes only members of parliament's leadership and faction leaders. Sutrop points to the Estonian Constitution's guarantee of a free mandate for MPs — they are not bound by instructions from voters, parties or factions — and notes that presidential elections in the Riigikogu are held by secret ballot.
Nominating a candidate should not be a matter of party deals
According to Sutrop, nominating a candidate requires the support of at least one-fifth of Riigikogu members — at least 21 MPs — who need not belong to a single party and could include non-affiliated members as well. This would help avoid the impression that a candidate represents only one party. Multiple candidates could be put forward, giving the public a chance to hear how each understands the president's constitutional role and which societal issues they consider important.
Sutrop emphasizes that the 68 votes needed to elect a president belong to the people's elected representatives in the Riigikogu, not to party leaders, and that no one should know in advance which candidate already has that support guaranteed — otherwise the vote would no longer be a genuine election. She adds that the Council of Elders can still serve as a platform for inter-party talks, but the final decision rests solely with the full Riigikogu, voting in secret.
