Local elections will be held in Latvia on June 7. Unlike other Latvian local authorities, the new Riga City Council will be elected after five years of the current term, as in 2020 snap elections were held and the Riga City Council served for a year longer than it would normally have done. 16 political forces and 743 candidates have applied for the 60 seats on the Riga City Council. In an interview with LETA, Olegs Burovs, the mayoral candidate from the party alliance Honor to Serve Riga (GKR) and the Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS), said the alliance's goal is to make Riga a city people do not wish to leave. He stressed that the development of Riga is the basis for Latvia's economic growth. The more investment Riga attracts, the more opportunities it will have to finance education and social programs.

What are your main priorities for the development of Riga when running for mayor in the next municipal elections?

The party Honor to Serve Riga has existed for 13 years, and we have built this party as a municipal party. We have been represented in the Riga City Council for all of these 13 years, only three years in the opposition and the rest of the time in the coalition, so we already have a lot of experience and knowledge about the economy of Riga.

If we talk about our priorities, Riga is not a friendly city at the moment, not for residents, not for entrepreneurs, not for investors. Our goal is to make Riga a city which people do not wish to leave, so that it is comfortable to live in Riga, so that the economy develops in the city, so that entrepreneurs come and invest in the administrative territory of Riga. I am convinced that, if we are talking about Latvia's economic development, then Riga's development is at its core. Everything starts with Riga, and only then can other regions develop. The more investment we attract, the more taxes Riga will collect, which means we can finance more education and social programs.

In respect to education sector, we want to increase teachers' salaries by 30 percent, as well as to expand incentive programs and teacher training. The prestige of the teaching profession should definitely be raised, which involves a number of things, not just raising salaries, but also, for example, the allocation of service apartments. This is not just about young professionals.

In the field of education, we believe that there should be free breakfast for grades 1-3 and free lunch for grades 1-9, and that school catering should be more controlled and locally produced. Pupils should also receive the necessary support from speech therapists, psychologists, social pedagogues, career counsellors and mentors. STEM subjects should be promoted, modern laboratories and internships in companies should be provided. In this respect, we see that cooperation can be improved not only with universities, but also with companies. Summer camps should be more accessible to families with children.

The next topic is social protection and health. We believe that support for families should be increased to EUR 1,500 in the event of childbirth.

We also encourage special support programs for children with special needs, such as the creation of a database of assistants. Support for such families is very, very important. At the same time, we are also talking about social benefits and access to services for the elderly, such as family-type retirement homes, home care. Clearly, this should not be the responsibility of the municipality, but we should continue with the 'voucher' system that was introduced in the past, increase the amount of vouchers and allow private entrepreneurs to do this as well.

Why did GKR choose to cooperate with ZZS in these elections, and how will this cooperation affect your program?

The history of the cooperation is that in 2023, before entering the coalition, ZZS offered to cooperate in the municipal elections. In September 2023, we signed an agreement with ZZS to run together in the Riga City Council elections. We joined forces for several reasons. We saw that several parties were joining together to achieve a better result. That is why we were looking for a partner. The second reason is state funding - it is very difficult to run in elections without state funding. At the moment, the GKR does not have state funding, because in the previous elections we only had a contract with Latvia First to run in the elections, we did not have an alliance.

ZZS has not been represented in the Riga City Council for a long time, but at the same time ZZS has a lot of experience in municipalities in other regions and cities, for example, Jelgava, Ventspils, Madona, Dobele. Therefore, our cooperation is logical. ZZS is a local government party. We are a conservative, centrist party, and so is ZZS.

What are your chances in the elections, and what percentage of votes do you hope to win?

I am not like some of my colleagues and competitors who say we will have more than 50 percent, who say I will be the mayor.

If we talk about predictions, one political analyst has predicted 7 percent of the votes for GKR and 4 percent for ZZS, then I think that is also what we should be fighting for - 7 plus 4 = 11 percent. I believe that the winner in the Riga City Council for the next four years will not be the one who has won the most seats, but the one who can unite all the other parties and factions around him and form a coalition. I cannot stand the saying about 'red lines', but the 'red line' for us is February 24, 2022. Those people who do not want to talk about it, who avoid talking about the war, that is the red line for us. Who these parties are is clear to everyone. We understand very well who the aggressor is and we are not afraid to say so. Those are the only red lines.

What are the main challenges Riga is facing today and how do you plan to tackle them?

If we talk about what has been done, then unfortunately the result is very sad. Riga has lost its leadership. Unfortunately, when we compare Riga with a number of other Latvian cities, the comparison is not in Riga's favor. How Valmiera is developing now, how Ogre, Jelgava, Liepaja, Ventspils look. Despite the fact that these cities have small budgets, they are doing everything they can to look good and to develop. Riga has lost all that, Riga is unambitious, dirty, with empty shop windows.

A lot depends on economic development, the worse the economy in the country, the more empty, abandoned buildings there are, but in principle Riga is currently doing nothing to stimulate, to revitalize its areas, the city center, to motivate people to live, for example, in Ziepniekkalns instead of coming to live in Marupe. That is why we are talking about making the city friendlier. Families living in Soviet-era houses need support in renovating their housing stock. Solutions are needed - not just empty words.

Riga needs to develop its offer of events - concerts, sports championships, festivals, conferences, competitions - anything that attracts people. If people stay here, visit restaurants and cultural events, it means income for the city. We need to use what we already have - for example, Mezaparks - and create a program that attracts thousands. We also need to think about cooperation with the state, especially with the upcoming EuroBasket 2025 tournament. The more such activities, the more likely people will return to Riga later.

The condition of roads and infrastructure remains a major problem. Now that the elections are approaching, street repairs are even more active, but many Rigans are wondering how many years these repairs are for? If only the asphalt surface is replaced, then with our weather conditions, cracks and potholes will be there after the first winter.

What are your thoughts on the development of public transport in Riga, and do you plan to innovate in this area?

If we talk about public transport, we should think about how to extend the routes. For example, in the case of buses, extending them to Pieriga. And for trams, we should think about extensions, for example, further on Latgale Street, which has been discussed for several years.

Of course, it would be very good to seek and use European funding to run a tram to Purvciems - that would be very important. I believe that we need to put more emphasis on trams in public transport. It is also important to ensure that public transport runs more frequently and that people do not have to wait too long for transport. It is positive that the plan to integrate train services with Riga Satiksme is finally being implemented. I cannot say that public transport in Riga is in a very poor state - no, it is not that dramatic.

How do you plan to solve the problem of housing affordability for Riga residents?

We should actively start the rental houses program, as I mentioned, for municipal professionals, as well as for young families. This is one of the initiatives where cooperation between the state and the municipality is needed.

We are interested in two things at the moment. First, the new housing stock. I believe that the municipality should not build housing itself, but that the municipality should encourage private developers to do so. The municipality, for its part, can help by stimulating the improvement of the existing housing stock with cofinancing, especially for energy efficiency measures, renovation, etc. On my initiative, the Law on Apartment Property now also provides for co-financing for the replacement of elevators, which is very important in apartment buildings, because the elevators are out-dated, often made in Belarus, and it is no longer possible to buy the spare parts. What we are proposing to Riga is to launch a program to co-finance the replacement of elevators.

If we are talking about dreams in the context of the elections, then my dream is improve residential areas such as Plavnieki, Purvciems, Imanta, Ilguciems, Kengarags, Zolitude, Jugla, Mezciems, etc. It is not just about house insulation - it is also about renovating engineering network and communications. I know that it is difficult for apartment owners, but the municipality, in cooperation with the state, can help. I am confident that we can do it.