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Vietos referendumai, kaip piliečių bendradarbiavimo transformacijos paradigma Latvijoje. There is a single level local government system in Latvia since the last local elections in June 2009. In 2012 there are 119 local governments – 9 cities and 110 municipalities (novads). This administrative territorial division is the result of the administrative territorial reform, implemented in the 1990s. Although local governments are the closest power to citizens, voting activity in local elections in Latvia is lower than in the elections of the Parliament (Fig. 1). At the same time, the citizens’ trust in local governments is much higher than in the government, as well as Parliament and political parties, but, unfortunately, the attitude towards all these institutions in general is negative. The system of the representative democracy of Latvia is in need of a serious transformation in all levels of governance. One of the possible solutions would be strengthening of the forms of direct democracy, which would ensure steady opportunities of participation in different processes of life beyond elections. |
