RIGA – Latvian lawmakers unexpectedly blocked the reinstatement of General Prosecutor Jānis Maizītis, throwing a huge question mark over the future of both the prosecutor’s and the office’s anti-corruption efforts.

Forty-seven deputies voted Thursday against Maizītis’ third term in the post, while 45 voted for and two ballots were declared invalid. The ballot was secret, so it is unclear who exactly voted against the [private_supervisor]candidacy.

Preliminary polling prior to the vote had suggested that the prosecutor was expected to sail through, mustering up to 70 votes in the 100-seat chamber, but a mass defection at the last minute has left observers scratching their heads.

Jānis Urbanovičs, head of the opposition center-left Harmony Center that supported Maizītis, was quoted as saying that the Saeima should be disbanded. Andris Runcis, a political scientist, said that lawmakers apparently felt that it would be easier to achieve good results in the October elections without a strong prosecutor breathing down their necks.

Maizītis has been a stalwart against Latvia’s corrupt political system, and perhaps his crowning achievement was to throw Ventspils Mayor Aivars Lembergs behind bars for nearly a year. Lembergs has been incriminated of graft and falsifying income statements, and his case is still under investigation.

Naturally, as a result of his indefatigable efforts, Maizītis has made powerful enemies, and they made their voice known, albeit anonymously, on Thursday. Not surprisingly, the Lembergs-controlled Greens and Farmers Union was the most hostile to a third term for Maizītis and grilled him with the most questions prior to the vote.

Curiously, the opposition People’s Party, which last month exited the ruling coalition, supported the last-minute proposal to make the ballot secret, suggesting the party might have wanted to stick a spoke in the government’s wheels. The minority government fully backed Maizītis’ candidacy.

Maizītis, who was hoping to win his third five-year term as the country’s top prosecutor, expressed his disappointment. He promised to share details about attempts to pressure the prosecutor’s office as soon as he left the post.

Pāvels Gruziņš, chairman of the Constitutional Court, had recommended that Maizītis retain the post, as had President Valdis Zatlers and Parliament’s legal committee.

Maizītis, whose second term ends next month, said he was unsure what he would do next in his career, adding that he didn’t see himself involved in politics. [/private_supervisor] [private_subscription 1 month]candidacy.

Preliminary polling prior to the vote had suggested that the prosecutor was expected to sail through, mustering up to 70 votes in the 100-seat chamber, but a mass defection at the last minute has left observers scratching their heads.

Jānis Urbanovičs, head of the opposition center-left Harmony Center that supported Maizītis, was quoted as saying that the Saeima should be disbanded. Andris Runcis, a political scientist, said that lawmakers apparently felt that it would be easier to achieve good results in the October elections without a strong prosecutor breathing down their necks.

Maizītis has been a stalwart against Latvia’s corrupt political system, and perhaps his crowning achievement was to throw Ventspils Mayor Aivars Lembergs behind bars for nearly a year. Lembergs has been incriminated of graft and falsifying income statements, and his case is still under investigation.

Naturally, as a result of his indefatigable efforts, Maizītis has made powerful enemies, and they made their voice known, albeit anonymously, on Thursday. Not surprisingly, the Lembergs-controlled Greens and Farmers Union was the most hostile to a third term for Maizītis and grilled him with the most questions prior to the vote.

Curiously, the opposition People’s Party, which last month exited the ruling coalition, supported the last-minute proposal to make the ballot secret, suggesting the party might have wanted to stick a spoke in the government’s wheels. The minority government fully backed Maizītis’ candidacy.

Maizītis, who was hoping to win his third five-year term as the country’s top prosecutor, expressed his disappointment. He promised to share details about attempts to pressure the prosecutor’s office as soon as he left the post.

Pāvels Gruziņš, chairman of the Constitutional Court, had recommended that Maizītis retain the post, as had President Valdis Zatlers and Parliament’s legal committee.

Maizītis, whose second term ends next month, said he was unsure what he would do next in his career, adding that he didn’t see himself involved in politics. [/private_subscription 1 month] [private_subscription 4 months]candidacy.

Preliminary polling prior to the vote had suggested that the prosecutor was expected to sail through, mustering up to 70 votes in the 100-seat chamber, but a mass defection at the last minute has left observers scratching their heads.

Jānis Urbanovičs, head of the opposition center-left Harmony Center that supported Maizītis, was quoted as saying that the Saeima should be disbanded. Andris Runcis, a political scientist, said that lawmakers apparently felt that it would be easier to achieve good results in the October elections without a strong prosecutor breathing down their necks.

Maizītis has been a stalwart against Latvia’s corrupt political system, and perhaps his crowning achievement was to throw Ventspils Mayor Aivars Lembergs behind bars for nearly a year. Lembergs has been incriminated of graft and falsifying income statements, and his case is still under investigation.

Naturally, as a result of his indefatigable efforts, Maizītis has made powerful enemies, and they made their voice known, albeit anonymously, on Thursday. Not surprisingly, the Lembergs-controlled Greens and Farmers Union was the most hostile to a third term for Maizītis and grilled him with the most questions prior to the vote.

Curiously, the opposition People’s Party, which last month exited the ruling coalition, supported the last-minute proposal to make the ballot secret, suggesting the party might have wanted to stick a spoke in the government’s wheels. The minority government fully backed Maizītis’ candidacy.

Maizītis, who was hoping to win his third five-year term as the country’s top prosecutor, expressed his disappointment. He promised to share details about attempts to pressure the prosecutor’s office as soon as he left the post.

Pāvels Gruziņš, chairman of the Constitutional Court, had recommended that Maizītis retain the post, as had President Valdis Zatlers and Parliament’s legal committee.

Maizītis, whose second term ends next month, said he was unsure what he would do next in his career, adding that he didn’t see himself involved in politics. [/private_subscription 4 months] [private_subscription 1 year]candidacy.

Preliminary polling prior to the vote had suggested that the prosecutor was expected to sail through, mustering up to 70 votes in the 100-seat chamber, but a mass defection at the last minute has left observers scratching their heads.

Jānis Urbanovičs, head of the opposition center-left Harmony Center that supported Maizītis, was quoted as saying that the Saeima should be disbanded. Andris Runcis, a political scientist, said that lawmakers apparently felt that it would be easier to achieve good results in the October elections without a strong prosecutor breathing down their necks.

Maizītis has been a stalwart against Latvia’s corrupt political system, and perhaps his crowning achievement was to throw Ventspils Mayor Aivars Lembergs behind bars for nearly a year. Lembergs has been incriminated of graft and falsifying income statements, and his case is still under investigation.

Naturally, as a result of his indefatigable efforts, Maizītis has made powerful enemies, and they made their voice known, albeit anonymously, on Thursday. Not surprisingly, the Lembergs-controlled Greens and Farmers Union was the most hostile to a third term for Maizītis and grilled him with the most questions prior to the vote.

Curiously, the opposition People’s Party, which last month exited the ruling coalition, supported the last-minute proposal to make the ballot secret, suggesting the party might have wanted to stick a spoke in the government’s wheels. The minority government fully backed Maizītis’ candidacy.

Maizītis, who was hoping to win his third five-year term as the country’s top prosecutor, expressed his disappointment. He promised to share details about attempts to pressure the prosecutor’s office as soon as he left the post.

Pāvels Gruziņš, chairman of the Constitutional Court, had recommended that Maizītis retain the post, as had President Valdis Zatlers and Parliament’s legal committee.

Maizītis, whose second term ends next month, said he was unsure what he would do next in his career, adding that he didn’t see himself involved in politics. [/private_subscription 1 year]

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