According to Lavly Perling, leader of the non-parliamentary Parempoolsed, her party opposes a proposal by Social Democratic Party chair and Minister of the Interior Lauri Läänemets, which would task law enforcement agencies with deciding on voting rights for Russian Federation citizens.

"In a democratic country, laws approved by the parliament govern people's lives, not decisions made by law enforcement agencies," Perling emphasized.

Perling argued that Läänemets's plan, which involves law enforcement determining Russian citizens' voting rights, poses a fundamental risk to the Republic of Estonia as it solves no real issues and directly contradicts the principles of the rule of law.

She added that it is alarming in itself that the minister of the interior presented such an inappropriate idea for discussion among government parties.

Läänemets' proposal outlines that non-citizens permanently residing in Estonia – including Russian Federation citizens and stateless individuals – would first need to register as voters. They would then be required to somehow demonstrate their opposition to Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine, after which law enforcement could remove individuals with "inappropriate attitudes" from the list.

Perling pointed out that around 140,000 non-citizens in Estonia hold voting rights, meaning law enforcement could potentially be tasked with assessing the loyalty of tens of thousands of individuals. Such a system, she said, is characteristic of Russia and other authoritarian regimes, not of a state governed by the rule of law.

According to Perling, Läänemets confuses actions with thoughts – under the rule of law, people are held accountable strictly for their actions, not thoughts, and only by court order, not by Läänemets' "thought police" decrees. She noted that people can already be held accountable for disturbing public order, engaging in activities against the state and hate speech that threatens life and safety. The law enforcement agencies under Läänemets' jurisdiction should focus on these issues, she said, rather than assessing individuals' beliefs through a dystopian thought-police approach.

Perling remarked: "It seems either the minister of the interior has not thoroughly thought this plan through, or it is merely a superficial initiative intended to reassure the Social Democrats' pro-Estonian voters."

Instead of establishing a "thought police," she said, the situation should be addressed strictly through legal measures consistent with the rule of law. This would entail passing a legal amendment that would prevent citizens of the Russian Federation, a regime designated as terrorist by the Riigikogu, from participating in local government elections.

In collaboration with the Parempoolsed, retired Col. Leo Kunnas introduced a bill on Thursday aimed at suspending the voting rights of Russian Federation citizens for as long as the Riigikogu's designation of Russia as a terrorist regime stands.

"This is precisely the approach outlined in the previous coalition agreement between the Reform Party, Social Democrats and Eesti 200. With this bill, we are providing a clear, legally sound and timely solution to the coalition government on how to restrict Russian citizens' voting rights," Perling emphasized.

Amending the Local Government Council Election Act requires the support of 51 Riigikogu members. According to Perling, this amendment does not conflict with existing initiatives seeking to amend the Constitution but complements them, making it possible to restrict voting rights as early as the 2025 local elections.

In an interview with ERR, Social Democratic Party chair and Minister of the Interior Lauri Läänemets said his party plans to propose that only long-term foreign residents in Estonia who explicitly denounce Russia's war in Ukraine would be eligible to vote in local elections. Additionally, the ISS would have the authority to remove undesirable individuals from voter lists.

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