Each of Tallinn's eight administrative subdivisions is presided over by a district elder (Vanem); Lavrova was the Social Democrats (SDE) initial candidate – the Lasnamäe district still goes to that party in terms of finding an elder, but this must be amenable to all the other coalition partners.

Pärtel-Peeter Pere (Reform), one of the Tallinn deputy mayors, said: "We are delighted that the Social Democrats opted to seek out a new district elder, as Tatjana Lavrova's positions and statements, regardless of whether they amounted to anything, are disturbing."

Lavrova announced her withdrawal from running after media reports of work she had done for an organization which supports Soviet war veterans, her opposition to the handling of the 2007 relocation of the so-called bronze soldier statue, and her involvement in reaching out to Russian leader Vladimir Putin several years ago, in preparation for the "Teeme ära!"/World Cleanup Day initiative expanding its activities into Russia.

Lavrova declined to explain her decision to step down as Lasnamäe district elder candidate, however.

Tallinn Deputy Mayor Madle Lippus (SDE) said that it was her decision to make.

"She felt that in such a situation, with significant public pressure, it is not a good starting point for the role of district elder," Lippus said, acknowledging the concerns over Lavrova's candidacy.

At the same time, Lippus said, Lavrova had not herself addressed Putin's office on the "Teeme ära!" question; that was a matter for the local organizing teams, which sent such addresses to all heads of state.

"This is one of those issues where the understanding has gone in a direction that does not reflect what actually happened. But certainly, it has created a background that makes it challenging to take on the position of district elder," the deputy mayor said.

Isamaa, SDE's coalition partner in Tallinn, was most vocal in calling into question Lavrova's candidacy. Riina Solman, who heads up Isamaa's Tallinn branch, said the party as a minimum expected Lavrova to repudiate past comments on the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, and the ongoing Ukraine War.

Some SDE members themselves had expressed dissatisfaction with the prospect of Lavrova taking on the post in any case, Solman added.

Lasnamäe is the most populous district of Tallinn and is home to a large population of Russian-speaking residents.

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