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DE RUEHTL #0427/01 1251349
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R 051349Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY TALLINN
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INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TALLINN 000427 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV EN
SUBJECT: ESTONIA GEARS UP FOR PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  In the run-up to presidential 
elections five of Estonia's six major political parties 
have agreed to try to find a common candidate from a 
slate of twelve nominees.  The first round of voting is 
scheduled for a special session of parliament in August. 
If no single candidate wins a two-thirds majority in 
parliament, voting will move to an electoral college 
consisting of MPs and local government representatives. 
An institution with fairly limited formal powers, the 
Estonian presidency has been defined in the years since 
Estonian re-independence by its holders.  The relatively 
low profile of current President Arnold Ruutel has left 
some Estonians longing for a candidate in the mold of 
the late Lennart Meri.  End Summary. 
 
ELECTING A PRESIDENT 
- - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶2. (U) Given the relatively fragmented nature of 
Estonian party politics, rallying a two-thirds majority 
of Parliament (68 votes out of 101) around a single 
candidate has proven impossible in the fifteen years 
since Estonian re-independence.  Should parliament again 
deadlock this August, the decision will go to an 
Electoral College comprised of MPs and local government 
council representatives.  The winner there requires 50% 
plus one vote, and it is quite possible for a winning 
candidate to be elected President without having been 
nominated in Parliament or winning the support of a 
majority of MPs. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Five of the six parties in Parliament -- Pro 
Patria Union, Res Publica, Reform, Center Party and the 
Social Democrats -- have agreed publicly to find a 
mutually acceptable Presidential candidate with the 
objective of avoiding a second round in the Electoral 
College.  (People's Union, of which President Ruutel was 
a member, says it will focus its energies on the 
electoral college.)  Collectively the five parties have 
put forward twelve candidates for consideration.  The 
list is to be winnowed during a series of meetings in 
coming months.  The group includes: 
 
-- a member of the European Parliament (Toomas Hendrik 
Ilves) and five MPs (Speaker Toomas Varek, Enn Eesmaa, 
Ene Ergma, Liina Tonisson and Peeter Tulviste); 
-- two businessmen (Jaan Manitski and Eesti Telekom 
Chairman Jaan Mannik); 
-- three national and local government figures (Minister 
of Population and Ethnic Affairs Paul-Eerik Rummo, Tartu 
Mayor Laine Janes and Tartu City Council Chairman Aadu 
Must); and 
-- Tartu University Rector Jaak Aaviksoo 
 
IN PARLIAMENT OR THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE? 
- - - - - - - - - 
 
¶4. (SBU) Opinion polls show MEP and former Foreign 
Minister Toomas-Hendrik Ilves to be the most popular 
candidate with the public (tallying 29% in a recent 
poll).  He is also the only nominee to attract support 
from three of the five parties.  Until recently both 
People's Union and Center Party -- which, combined, have 
a blocking minority for a parliamentary vote -- 
indicated they would not back an Ilves candidacy.  More 
recently the Center Party has softened its line. 
Nevertheless, rumors abound that People?s Union and 
Center have done a deal to take the vote to the 
Electoral College where they believe they have a 
majority. 
 
¶5. (SBU) President Ruutel has yet to decide whether he 
will seek re-election, though recent appearances on the 
hustings have prompted speculation that the 77 year old 
will in fact run.  With support from People?s Union and 
Center, Ruutel would stand a good chance of winning in 
the Electoral College.  What Center would get in return 
for supporting Ruutel is unclear, though Party Chairman 
Edgar Savisaar would doubtless exact a price for 
supporting Ruutel. 
 
THE SHADOW OF LENNART MERI 
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - 
 
¶6. (SBU) The passing of former President Lennart Meri in 
March, and the subsequent high-profile state funeral 
attended by presidents and former prime ministers, threw 
into stark relief the contrast between Meri and 
President Ruutel.  At the time (and prior to his own 
nomination) MP Enn Eesmaa told the Ambassador that 
Latvian President Vike-Freiberga seemed to have 
inherited from Meri the mantle of informal international 
 
TALLINN 00000427  002 OF 002 
 
 
spokesperson of the Baltic states.  Eesmaa expressed the 
hope that someone of similar stature would emerge to 
better represent Estonia, but acknowledged that the 
system favors candidates who are least offensive, rather 
than most charismatic. 
 
¶7. (SBU) If the election goes to the Electoral College 
(with its strong local flavor), the common touch will be 
critical.  Res Publica MP Urmas Reinsalu told us 
recently that both People's Union and the Center Party 
have a strong advantage at that level, in part because 
their parties control ministries that can "deliver the 
goodies" (Economy, Agriculture, Social Affairs, etc.). 
While Res Publica could support Ilves, Reinsalu said the 
party would also look to find a candidate with broader 
appeal for the Electoral College.  Tartu University 
Rector Jaak Aviksoo might fit that bill, he thought. 
 
COMMENT 
- - - - 
 
¶8. (SBU) In terms of U.S. interests the outcome of the 
2007 parliamentary elections will be of considerable 
more importance than this summer's presidential 
election.  But although the powers of the Estonian 
president are limited, President Meri showed that a 
combination of bully pulpit, willingness to stretch the 
interpretation of presidential authority, erudition, and 
plain old charm and wit can make the institution count, 
and help Estonia to punch above its weight in the 
international arena.   While we don't see anyone close 
to Meri in the current crop of candidates, the urbane 
(and Penn/Columbia-educated) Ilves probably comes 
closest, though whether he could win in either the 
Parliament or the Electoral College is debatable. 
Should Ilves emerge victorious, we can expect him to 
carve out a more robust role for the presidency in 
Estonian foreign policy than has been the case over the 
past five years. 
 
WOS