Ilga Kreituse (née Grava, born July 5, 1952, in

Tērvete Tērvete (liv. ''Terwenden'', german: Hofzumberge) is a village in Tērvete Parish, Dobele Municipality in the Semigallia region of Latvia. It is famous for the historic hillfort built for the kings of Western Semigallia (Zemgale) in the Middle ...

) is a Latvian politician, historian, and former

Speaker of the Saeima The Speaker of the Saeima ( lv, Saeimas priekšsēdētājs; lit. "Chairperson of the Saeima") is the presiding officer of the Parliament of Latvia, the Saeima. If the President of Latvia resigns from office, dies or is removed from office be ...

Biography

Kreituse was born in

and lived with her family, later moving to

Jūrmala Jūrmala (; "seaside") is a state city in Latvia, about west of Riga. Jūrmala is a resort town stretching and sandwiched between the Gulf of Riga and the Lielupe River. It has a stretch of white-sand beach, and a population of 49,325 in 2019 ...

. In 1970, she graduated from Jūrmala Secondary School No. 3. From 1972 until 1977, Kreituse studied at the Faculty of History and Philosophy at the

University of Latvia University of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Universitāte, shortened ''LU'') is a state-run university located in Riga, Latvia established in 1919. The ''QS World University Rankings'' places the university between 801st and 1000th globally, seventh ...

. From 1977 to 1980, she was involved with

postgraduate studies Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and struc ...

Moscow State University M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University (MSU; russian: Московский государственный университет имени М. В. Ломоносова) is a public research university in Moscow, Russia and the most prestigious ...

. In 1982, she left the university, defending her dissertation on "the use of mathematical methods in historical science." After returning to Latvia, she worked at the Faculty of History and Philosophy, the Institute of Party History and the

Latvian Academy of Sciences The Latvian Academy of Sciences ( lv, Latvijas Zinātņu akadēmija) is the official science academy of Latvia and is an association of the country's foremost scientists. The academy was founded as the ''Latvian SSR Academy of Sciences'' ( lv, L ...

. She also worked as a teacher at

Riga State Gymnasium No.1 Riga State Gymnasium No.1 ( lv, Rīgas Valsts 1. ģimnāzija), the oldest school in the Baltic states, offers secondary education (grades 7 to 12) in Riga, the capital of Latvia. The school traces its origins to school of Riga Cathedral, which w ...

. She was elected to the 5th Saeima as a part of the Democratic Center Party. After the merger of the

Democratic Center Party of Latvia The Democratic Center Party ( lv, Demokrātiskā centra partija) was a small centre political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the memb ...

and as a part of the

Democratic Party "Saimnieks" The Democratic Party "Saimnieks" ( lv, Demokrātiskā partija "Saimnieks") was a Latvian centre-left political party formed through the merger of the Latvian Democratic Party and the political party "Saimnieks" in 1995. It won the 1995 parliament ...

in the 6th Saeima elections. She was then elected as the

on November 7, 1995, remaining in office until her resignation on September 26, 1996. That same year, she ran for the presidential election and took second place after the re-elected

Guntis Ulmanis Guntis Ulmanis (born September 13, 1939), also known as Guntis Rumpītis from 1949 to 1989, is a Latvian politician and the fifth President of Latvia from 1993 to 1999. Biography Early life Guntis Ulmanis was born in Riga on September 13, 1939. ...

. In September 1996 he resigned from the DPS faction, but continued to work in the 6th Saeima as an independent member. After the split of the Democratic Party "Saimnieks," she and her second husband Aivars Kreituss, he became the leaders of the newly formed Labor Party. In the 7th Saeima elections in 1998, Kreituse ran in the joint list of the Labor Party, the

Latvian Green Party The Latvian Green Party ( lv, Latvijas Zaļā partija, LZP) is a green political party in Latvia. It was founded in 1990. It was a member of the European Green Party from 2003 until its expulsion in 2019. It is positioned in the centre and lean ...

and the Christian Democratic Union, which did not receive the necessary support to enter the Saeima. She was elected to the

Riga City Council Riga City Council ( lv, Rīgas dome) is the government of the city of Riga, the capital of Latvia. Its meeting place is in the Riga Town Hall (''Rīgas rātsnams)'' at the Town Hall Square (''Rātslaukums'') in the very heart of Riga. The Riga C ...

in 2001, but resigned in favor of Kreituss taking the lead. In the 9th Saeima elections, together with the Labor Party, she participated in the

Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party ) , colours = Maroon Green , headquarters = Riga, Lāčplēša iela 60, LV-1011 , seats1_title = Saeima , seats1 = , seats2_title = European Parliament , seats2 = , website lsdsp.lv, membership_year = 2017 , membership = 633 The Latv ...

list, which did not overcome the 5% barrier.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kreituse, Ilga 20th-century Latvian politicians Democratic Center Party of Latvia politicians Democratic Party "Saimnieks" politicians Women deputies of the Saeima Speakers of the Saeima 1952 births Living people