Estonia 200 (, russian: Эстония 200) is a

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

political party in Estonia. It is a party that adheres to

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives from ...

and

economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism ...

History

In 2017 the initiators started to discuss about the future of Estonia. The formal foundation of the movement can be considered to be 2 May 2018 when its manifesto was first published. According to an opinion poll conducted by Turu-uuringute AS in the middle of June 2018, 15% of voters were ready to vote for the movement in the next

parliamentary elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

On 30 May 2018, the former governor of

Põlva County Põlva County ( et, Põlva maakond or ''Põlvamaa'') is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is situated in south-eastern part of the country and borders Tartu, Valga and Võru counties. 28,507 people live in Põlva County – constituting 2.3% o ...

Igor Taro was appointed as rural areas coordinator of the movement. On 7 June, the initiators confirmed that the CEO of Eesti 200 is going to be Henrik Raave. On 8 June, the authors of the manifesto registered Estonia 200 as a

nonprofit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

. The founders of the NPO were Kristina Kallas, Priit Alamäe, Kristiina Tõnnisson, Indrek Nuume, Igor Taro and Henrik Raave. Kristina Kallas was elected as the head of the council. On 7 August it became public that

Margus Tsahkna Margus Tsahkna (born 13 April 1977) is an Estonian politician, one of the leaders of new liberal Estonia 200 party, former leader of the conservative Isamaa party, former Minister of Defence in Jüri Ratas' cabinet and Minister of Social Protectio ...

, the former leader of Pro Patria, was going to join Eesti 200. On 21 August 2018, the movement decided to form a

party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature f ...

later in the autumn and participate in the upcoming

in March 2019. On 3 November 2018, the movement became a party and Kristina Kallas was elected as its first chairwoman. On 15 May 2019, Triin Saag told

Europe Elects Europe Elects is a poll aggregator that collects and publishes election-related data such as opinion polls in European countries. Genesis and history Europe Elects was founded in 2014 as a Twitter account. The project quickly rose to promin ...

that E200 aims at joining what today is the liberal

Renew Europe Renew Europe (Renew) is a liberal, pro-European political group of the European Parliament founded for the ninth European Parliament term. The group is the successor to the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) group which exist ...

group in the EU Parliament. In July 2020 Karin Kaup Lapõnin became the Executive Secretary of the party. On 10 October 2020 the Eesti 200 elected a new board. Kristina Kallas was reelected as the chairwoman.

, Pirko Konsa, Jaak Laineste were reelected as members of the board and Karin Kaup Lapõnin, Margot Roose, Lauri Hussar and

Marek Reinaas Marek Reinaas (born 21 March 1971) is an Estonian columnist, advertising executive, entrepreneur, and politician. In April 2023, he was elected to XV Riigikogu, representing the Estonia 200 (, E200) party. Reinaas has worked as a political colu ...

were elected as members of the board. On 15 October 2022 Lauri Hussar defeated former chairman Kristina Kallas in the party’s leadership election and became chairman.

Ideology

Estonia 200 describes itself as a liberal and progressive party. They support Estonia's membership of

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

. They support same-sex marriage and making internet access a human right. They support reducing the personal income tax rate by 15% for employees whose place of work and residence is outside Tallinn and Harju County. They support community-based renewable energy sources and creating a bond for green funding. They wish to input mental health lessons into school curriculums. They support leaving 1% of local budgets to be directed toward investment objects chosen by residents. They intend on having local government bodies be made up 50% by politicians and 50% by representatives of experts and interest groups. They intend to decrease public funding for political parties.

Election results

Parliamentary elections

European Parliament elections

References

{{Political parties in Estonia Centrist parties in Estonia Liberal parties in Estonia Political parties in Estonia Political parties established in 2018 2018 establishments in Estonia