Latvia elects European Union’s first openly gay president
Edgars Rinkevics has been elected Latvia’s new president by the country’s parliament, making him the European Union’s first openly gay head of state.
The 49-year-old, who currently serves as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, will take office on 8 July. He will also make history as the first openly gay president in the Baltic nations.
Rinkevics received 52 votes from Latvia’s 100-seat Saeima legislature, one more than required to win the presidency. “I am honoured and humbled to be elected as President of the Republic of Latvia, I will do my best to serve the people of Latvia well,” he wrote on social media on 31 May. “I thank Members of Parliament for their trust.” READ MORE: Trans rights gain ground despite rising European rhetoric Rinkevics previously served as a state secretary within the Defence Ministry and, in the 1990s, worked as a journalist, among other things.
He has been well received by the Latvian public during his time as Minister of Foreign Affairs for his support of Ukraine and tough stance towards Russia.
