Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal suggested that former president Kersti Kaljulaid could be nominated as a candidate in presidential elections due in September 2026, ERR reports. Michal noted that incumbent president Alar Karis did not seem to have sufficient support in the parliament, the Riigikogu, to be reelected for a second term. Earlier, Lauri Läänemets, chairman of the opposition Social Democratic Party (SDE), hoped that Michal’s Estonian Reform Party was genuinely considering Kaljulaid’s candidacy, ERR reported.
Meanwhile, Taavi Linnamäe, CEO of the Kersti Kaljulaid Foundation, said that no politician from any party had approached Kaljulaid to discuss a possible run for a second term as president. Earlier, Kaljulaid was voted out of office as head of the Estonian Olympic Committee (EOK), ERR reported. Michal said that Kaljulaid was ousted by “mentally somewhat bitter and grumpy old men” in a “highly publicised mob attack,” ERR reported. Läänemets pointed out that Kaljulaid’s opponents at EOK included prominent Reform leaders.