Aleksejs Vidavskis (19 September 1943 – 1 July 2020) was a

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served as a member of the

Supreme Council of Latvia The Supreme Council of the Republic of Latvia (Latvian: Latvijas Republikas Augstākā Padome) was the transitional parliament of Latvia from 1990 to 1993, after the restoration of independence. The Supreme Council was elected on 1990 as the S ...

, as a mayor of

Daugavpils Daugavpils (see also other names) is a state city in southeastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city derives its name. The parts of the city to the north of the river belong to the historical Latvian region ...

, and as a deputy in the 8th and 9th

Saeima The Saeima () is the parliament of the Latvia, Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the p ...

(Latvian Parliament).

Biography

Early life

Vidavskis was born in

, Latvia on September 19, 1943, when the city was under

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

control as a part of the

Reichskommissariat Ostland The (RKO; ) was an Administrative division, administrative entity of the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories of Nazi Germany from 1941 to 1945. It served as the German Civil authority, civilian occupation regime in Lithuania, La ...

. He graduated from the

Riga Polytechnic Institute Riga Technical University (RTU) () is the oldest Institute of technology, technical university in the Baltic states, Baltic countries established on October 14, 1862. It is located in Riga, Latvia and was previously known as Riga Polytechnical ...

in 1979 while working various positions at the Daugavpils Chemical Fiber Factory from 1966 to 1987.

Political activity

He served as a member of the

from its establishment in 1990 until he and 14 other members who had voted against the

Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another state or failed state, or are breaka ...

were removed for "acting contrary to the Constitution." Vidavskis was elected mayor of Daugavpils from the

Harmony Centre Harmony Centre (, SC; , ЦC) was a social-democratic political alliance in Latvia. It originally consisted of five political parties: the National Harmony Party, the Socialist Party of Latvia, New Centre, the Daugavpils City Party, and the Soc ...

party despite not being a member of the party at the time. He served as mayor from 1994 to 2001. He also served two terms as a

deputy Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spain, ...

of the

. He began his term in the 8th Saeima on November 5, 2002, and began his term in the 9th Saeima on 7 November 2006. He supported Latvia joining the European Union in interviews.

Retirement and death

Vidavskis retired from politics after his second term in the Saeima ended on November 2, 2010. He is reported to have moved to

Višķi Višķi ( Latgalian:''Vyški'', , ) is a village in Višķi Parish, Augšdaugava Municipality in the Latgale region of Latvia. History Until the 1930s Višķi was a shtetl, where the majority of the inhabitants were Jewish. During World War ...

for a quiet retirement. He died on July 1, 2020, at the age of 76, and his

memorial service A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects such as home ...

was held at Ss. Boris and Gleb Cathedral in Daugavpils on July 3.

References

External links

Saeima websiteHistorical membership of the Saeima
(in Latvian) {{DEFAULTSORT:Vidavkis, Aleksejs 1943 births 2020 deaths Politicians from Daugavpils Latvian people of Russian descent Deputies of the Supreme Council of the Republic of Latvia Deputies of the 8th Saeima Deputies of the 9th Saeima