The Most Famous

POLITICIANS from Latvia

This page contains a list of the greatest Latvian Politicians. The pantheon dataset contains 19,576 Politicians, 54 of which were born in Latvia. This makes Latvia the birth place of the 56th most number of Politicians behind Morocco, and Pakistan.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Latvian Politicians of all time. This list of famous Latvian Politicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Latvian Politicians.

1. Kārlis Ulmanis (1877 - 1942)

With an HPI of 63.46, Kārlis Ulmanis is the most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 45 different languages on wikipedia.

Kārlis Augusts Vilhelms Ulmanis (Latvian: [ˈkaːrlis ˈɑuɡusts ˈvilxɛlms ˈuɫmɑnis]; 4 September 1877 – 20 September 1942) was a Latvian politician and a dictator. He was one of the most prominent Latvian politicians of pre-World War II Latvia during the Interwar period of independence from November 1918 to June 1940 and served as the country's first prime minister. He served four times as prime minister, the last time as the head of an authoritarian regime, during which he subsequently also adopted the title of President of Latvia. The legacy of his dictatorship continues to divide public opinion in Latvia today.

2. Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga (b. 1937)

With an HPI of 63.12, Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga is the 2nd most famous Latvian Politician. Her biography has been translated into 52 different languages.

Vaira Vike-Freiberga (born 1 December 1937) is a Latvian politician who served as the sixth President of Latvia from 1999 to 2007. She is the first and to date only woman to hold the post. She was elected President of Latvia in 1999 and re-elected for the second term in 2003. Dr. Vaira Freiberga is a professor and interdisciplinary scholar, having published eleven books and numerous articles, essays and book chapters in addition to her extensive speaking engagements. As President of the Republic of Latvia 1999–2007, she was instrumental in achieving membership in the European Union and NATO for her country. She is active in international politics, was named Special Envoy to the Secretary General on United Nations reform and was official candidate for UN Secretary General in 2006. She remains active in the international arena and continues to speak in defense of liberty, equality and social justice, and for the need of Europe to acknowledge the whole of its history. She is a well-known pro-European, as such, in December 2007 she was named vice-chair of the Reflection group on the long-term future of the European Union. She is also known for her work in psycholinguistics, semiotics and analysis of the oral literature of her native country. After her presidency Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga serving as a Founding Co-Chair of the Nizami Ganjavi International Center and served as the President of Club of Madrid, the world's largest forum of former Heads of State and Government, from 2014 to 2020. She is also a member of the International Programme Board of the Prague European Summit.

3. Ernst Gideon von Laudon (1717 - 1790)

With an HPI of 62.36, Ernst Gideon von Laudon is the 3rd most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Ernst Gideon von Laudon, since 1759 Freiherr von Laudon (originally Laudohn or Loudon; 13 February 1717 – 14 July 1790), was a Baltic German-born Austrian military officer and one of the most successful opponents of the Prussian king Frederick the Great.

4. Jacob Kettler (1610 - 1682)

With an HPI of 62.06, Jacob Kettler is the 4th most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Jacob Kettler (German: Jakob von Kettler; Latvian: Hercogs Jēkabs Ketlers; 28 October 1610 – 1 January 1682) was Duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1642 to 1682. Under his rule, Courland and Semigallia became more independent of its Polish suzerain, reached its peak in wealth, and even engaged in its own overseas colonization, making it one of the smallest, but fastest growing states in the world at that time. Yet, in the end the results of his rule failed in the confrontation with much stronger powers both directly in the Baltic (Sweden) and overseas (Dutch Republic). A ruler "too rich and powerful to be a duke but too small and poor to be a king" could not, with his small ancestral territory and very limited resources, play the powerful role he sought in European politics of that time.

5. Peter von Biron (1724 - 1800)

With an HPI of 59.94, Peter von Biron is the 5th most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 21 different languages.

Peter von Biron (15 February 1724 – 13 January 1800) was the last duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1769 to 1795, when it was annexed by the Russian Empire.

6. Ernst Johann von Biron (1690 - 1772)

With an HPI of 59.86, Ernst Johann von Biron is the 6th most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 30 different languages.

Ernst Johann von Biron (German: Ernst Johann von Biron; Russian: Эрнст Иоганн Бирон; 23 November [O.S. 13 November] 1690 – 29 December [O.S. 18 December] 1772) was Duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1737 to 1740 and again from 1763 to 1769. He was also briefly the regent of the Russian Empire in 1740.

7. Andris Bērziņš (b. 1944)

With an HPI of 59.20, Andris Bērziņš is the 7th most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 47 different languages.

Andris Bērziņš (born 10 December 1944) is a Latvian businessman and politician who was President of Latvia from 2011 to 2015. Bērziņš was the President of Unibanka from 1993 to 2004. He was elected as President by the Saeima on 2 June 2011.

8. Egils Levits (b. 1955)

With an HPI of 58.96, Egils Levits is the 8th most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 50 different languages.

Egils Levits (born 30 June 1955) is a Latvian politician, lawyer, political scientist and jurist who served as the tenth president of Latvia from 2019 to 2023. He was a member of the European Court of Justice from 2004 to 2019. During the late Soviet-era, he was a member of the Popular Front of Latvia and contributed to the declaration of restored Latvian independence in 1990. He was vice-prime minister and minister for justice of Latvia from 1993 to 1994 and ambassador to Hungary, Austria and Switzerland from 1994 to 1995. He was then appointed a judge of the European Court of Human Rights, a position he held until 2004. He finished second in the indirect election for the president of Latvia in 2015, behind Raimonds Vējonis. Although an Independent, he was the candidate of the National Alliance. In 2018, Levits was reappointed a judge of the European Court of Justice, having first been appointed in 2004. He is married and has two children: a son, Linards, and daughter, Indra. He published a book of memoirs in 2019. He announced in early May 2023 that he would not run for reelection to the presidency and, on 31 May, Edgars Rinkēvičs was elected as his successor.

9. Frederick Casimir Kettler (1650 - 1698)

With an HPI of 57.77, Frederick Casimir Kettler is the 9th most famous Latvian Politician. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Frederick Casimir Kettler (German: Friedrich Casimir Kettler; 6 July 1650 – 22 January 1698) was Duke of Courland and Semigallia from 1682 to 1698. Frederick Casimir was the son of Jacob Kettler and Louise Charlotte of Brandenburg. In his reign the Duchy lost its geopolitical position and became Sweden, Prussia and Russia's territorial subject of interests.

10. Pauline Therese of Württemberg (1800 - 1873)

With an HPI of 57.70, Pauline Therese of Württemberg is the 10th most famous Latvian Politician. Her biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Pauline of Württemberg (4 September 1800 – 10 March 1873) was Queen of Württemberg by marriage to her first cousin King William I of Württemberg.

People

Pantheon has 58 people classified as Latvian politicians born between 1574 and 1984. Of these 58, 36 (62.07%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Latvian politicians include Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga, Andris Bērziņš, and Egils Levits. The most famous deceased Latvian politicians include Kārlis Ulmanis, Ernst Gideon von Laudon, and Jacob Kettler. As of April 2024, 4 new Latvian politicians have been added to Pantheon including Augusts Kirhenšteins, Evika Siliņa, and Roberts Zīle.