Raimonds Vējonis (born 15 June 1966) is a Latvian politician who served as the 9th

President of Latvia The president of Latvia ( ) is head of state and commander-in-chief of the Latvian National Armed Forces, National Armed Forces of the Latvia, Republic of Latvia. The term of this office is four years. Before 1999, it was three years. The presi ...

from 2015 to 2019 and the president of the

Latvian Basketball Association The Latvian Basketball Association (), also known as LBS, is the national governing body of basketball in Latvia. It was founded in 1923 and was one of the FIBA Europe co-founders, but due to the Occupation of the Baltic states, Soviet and Nazi o ...

since 2020. He is a member of the

Latvian Green Party The Latvian Green Party (, LZP) is a green conservative political party in Latvia. Founded in 1990, the party was a member of the European Green Party from 2003 until its expulsion in 2019. It is positioned in the centre-right of the political s ...

, part of the

Union of Greens and Farmers The Union of Greens and Farmers (, ZZS) is an agrarian political alliance in Latvia. It is made up of the Latvian Farmers' Union, Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party, and For Latvia and Ventspils. It is positioned in the centre on the ...

. He served as Minister of Environmental Protection and Regional Development in 2002 and in 2011 and as Minister of the Environment from 2003 to 2011, while the Ministry of Regional Development was a separate department. He became Minister of Defence of Latvia in 2014 and held that office until becoming president in 2015. Since 2020 he is the president of

Early life and career

Vējonis was born on 15 June 1966 in

Pskov Oblast Pskov Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the west of the country. Its administrative center is the Classification of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Pskov. As of the Russian Census ...

to a Latvian father and a Russian mother, while his father was serving in the

Soviet army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

there. He grew up in Sarkaņi and attended school in the nearby town of

Madona Madona (; ) is a town with town rights in the Vidzeme region of Latvia and is the center of the Madona municipality. History The surrounding area of Madona had been populated in earlier times, which is confirmed by discoveries of old buria ...

. Vējonis became interested in environmental protection because his grandfather had been blinded by chemicals used on a Soviet

kolkhoz A kolkhoz ( rus, колхо́з, a=ru-kolkhoz.ogg, p=kɐlˈxos) was a form of collective farm in the Soviet Union. Kolkhozes existed along with state farms or sovkhoz. These were the two components of the socialized farm sector that began to eme ...

. He graduated from Faculty of Biology of the

University of Latvia University of Latvia (, shortened ''LU'') is a public research university located in Riga, Latvia. The university was established in 1919. History The University of Latvia, initially named as the Higher School of Latvia () was founded on Se ...

in 1989 and obtained a master's degree from it in 1995. During his studies he worked as a biology teacher in Madona. From 1989 to 1996 he was deputy director of Madona Regional Environmental board. He was a member of Madona city council from 1990 to 1993. From 1996 to 2002 he was director of Greater Riga Regional Environmental board, during this period he also was a board member in Skulte port and served as state representative at Getliņi Eko waste management company.

Political career

In 2002, Vējonis became Minister of Environmental Protection and Regional Development. He was elected as

on 3 June 2015, receiving the votes of 55 of the 100 members of the

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 ...

. He used his victory speech to promise to ensure national security, in light of events in Ukraine, while protecting the environment. He became the first head of state in the European Union to be a member of a

green party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...

Post-presidency

In January 2020, Vējonis was elected to a four-year term as president of the

by a wide margin.

Personal life

In 1986, he married Iveta Vējone, a teacher and former first lady. The couple have two sons, Ivo and Nauris. Vejonis speaks fluent Russian and decent English in addition to Latvian.

Health problems

On 18 January 2016, Vējonis was hospitalized. He was first transported to the Toxicology and

Sepsis Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage of sepsis is followed by suppression of the immune system. Common signs and s ...

Clinic of the Riga East Clinical University Hospital branch Gaiļezers, but a day later was transferred to the Latvian Cardiology Center at Pauls Stradiņš Clinical University Hospital. The press counselor of the president initially did not disclose the nature of the illness and suggested that the president had a viral infection. However, independent medical experts theorized that Vējonis probably had an

infective endocarditis Infective endocarditis is an infection of the inner surface of the heart (endocardium), usually the heart valve, valves. Signs and symptoms may include fever, petechia, small areas of bleeding into the skin, heart murmur, feeling tired, and anem ...

. On 20 January Vējonis underwent emergency open heart surgery to eliminate the source of infection in which the heart valve damaged by

sepsis Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition that arises when the body's response to infection causes injury to its own tissues and organs. This initial stage of sepsis is followed by suppression of the immune system. Common signs and s ...

was replaced with an

artificial heart valve An artificial heart valve is a one-way valve implanted into a person's heart to replace a heart valve that is not functioning properly ( valvular heart disease). Artificial heart valves can be separated into three broad classes: mechanical he ...

. Later on unnamed sources told the press that the illness was likely caused by untreated

tonsillitis Tonsillitis is inflammation of the tonsils in the upper part of the throat. It can be acute or chronic. Acute tonsillitis typically has a rapid onset. Symptoms may include sore throat, fever, enlargement of the tonsils, trouble swallowing, and en ...

, the press counselor of the president, while still refusing to disclose exact diagnosis, confirmed that the president had been having issues with his throat and his voice had been very hoarse. Vējonis left hospital on 26 February to undergo

physical therapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession, as well as the care provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through patient education, physical intervention, disease preventio ...

at National Rehabilitation Center "Vaivari". He was reported to be doing some work during his illness, but fully resumed his official duties on 30 March after spending more than two months recovering.

Honours

;National Honours * : (Former Grand Master) and Commander Grand Cross with Chain of the

Order of the Three Stars Order of the Three Stars () is the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia. It was established in 1924 in remembrance of the founding of Latvia. Its motto is ''Per aspera ad astra'', meaning "Through hardships towards the ...

(8 July 2015). * : (Former Grand Master) and Grand Cross of the

Order of Viesturs The Order of Viesturs () is a Latvian state order (honour), order founded in 1938, which was temporarily discontinued in 1940 by the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940, Soviet occupation of Latvia, but was re-established in 2004. The order is nam ...

* : Former Grand Master of the Cross of Recognition ;Foreign Honours * : Collar of the

Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana (, also the Order of the Cross of St. Mary's Land) was instituted by the President of Estonia, Lennart Meri, on 16 May 1995 to honour the independence of the Estonian state. (The Latin name ''Terra Mariana'' ...

(2 April 2019) * : Grand Cross special class of the

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (, or , BVO) is the highest state decoration, federal decoration of the Federal Republic of Germany. It may be awarded for any field of endeavor. It was created by the first List of president ...

(22 February 2019) * : Grand cross with Collar of the

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon () is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by Christian X of Denmark, King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. Nowaday ...

(16 November 2018) * : Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the

Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republi ...

(26 June 2018) * : Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of the Netherlands Lion The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands (, ) is a Dutch honours system, Dutch order of chivalry founded by William I of the Netherlands on 29 September 1815. The Order of the Netherlands Lion wa ...

(11 June 2018). * : The First Class of the

Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise The Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise () is a Ukrainian award. It is awarded for distinguished services to the state and people of the Ukrainian nation in the field of state building, strengthening the international prestige of Ukraine, develop ...

(22 November 2018).

References

, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Vejonis, Raimonds 1966 births Living people People from Pskov Oblast Latvian modern pagans Latvian people of Russian descent Latvian Green Party politicians Presidents of Latvia Ministers of defence of Latvia Ministers of the environment of Latvia Deputies of the 9th Saeima Deputies of the 10th Saeima Deputies of the 11th Saeima Deputies of the 12th Saeima University of Latvia alumni Recipients of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 1st class Knights Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic Recipients of the Collar of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana Grand Crosses Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the Order of the Falcon Recipients of the Order of the Netherlands Lion