Klaassen leaves his current post, which he has held since 2008, at the end of the year.

He said: "There are very turbulent processes taking place in Estonian society, as well as in the wider world.

"The world as a whole must reach a new and sustainable equilibrium point in the coming years. I believe that my experience will be of great benefit in shaping a balanced, smart and innovative Estonia," Klaassen said.

Klaassen will run in the Võru, Valga and Põlva counties constituency, and has been a Reform member since 2017.

Klaassen was also University of Life Sciences Rector 1993-1998. The vacancy he has created is open to applications to October 10, with the election taking place on October 28.

Given the modified d'Hondt system of proportional representation used in Estonia's elections, parties often run high-profile candidates higher up on the ordered list of candidates, with the hope of being able to distribute excess votes, once that candidate has reached the threshold number of votes, to candidates lower down the list, who may not be able to win a seat in their own right.

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