Narva national sport: change the mayor

Every self-respecting city has a national sport. In Otepää they go skiing, in Pärnu they look forward to summer, in Tartu they know how to do it and patiently explain it to the rest of the country. The government is changing in Narva.

This discipline requires endurance, good memory and sixteen deputies. Fifteen deputies form a political position. Sixteen already form a historical era.

The rules are simple. First, the participants solemnly announce that the city can no longer live in the old way. Then a person is elected, under whom the city will finally begin to live in a new way. After some time, it turns out that in the new way he is not living correctly enough. Then a new majority is assembled, usually differing from the old one by one person, and the salvation of the city begins again.

They don't get the mayor's chair. It is accepted for safekeeping.

Before the starting whistle of our decade, Eduard East managed to enter the field. He really was the mayor of Narva: he was elected in December 2013, and in December 2015 he was dismissed. East was placed between the two mayoral periods of Tarmo Tammiste and therefore today exists in a special section of the city’s memory - “it seems like it was, but no one is sure anymore.” It is not included in the count since July 27, 2016, but without it the background would look suspiciously calm.

First round: Tammiste, Evgrafov, Raik

In the summer of 2016, Tarmo Tammiste was the mayor. He had been in office for so long that he seemed less like a politician and more like part of the city's inventory—something between a city hall and a snow removal manual. In March 2019, deputies expressed no confidence in him, and on April 8 they elected Alexey Evgrafov.

This is how the first transfer of the baton took place.

Evgrafov held out until November 2020. After the no-confidence vote, the city lived for some time in what official documents call a power vacuum, but which the average person would call a Tuesday. On December 30, Katri Rajk became mayor.

This was the second shift.

Short program and roundabout

In August 2021, Rike was dismissed. Ants Liimets was elected mayor, who was given approximately two months before the local elections. In sports this is called a short program. Liimets managed to become mayor, quarrel with his own Reform Party and prove that in Narva two months are a full-fledged political era.

Third shift.

On December 16, 2021, Katri Rajk returned to the mayor's chair. This was the fourth shift and the first official confirmation that Narva politics was moving not in a straight line, but along a well-organized roundabout.

In September 2023, Raik again received a vote of no confidence. While deputies were choosing the next mayor, Elena Golubeva performed the duties. On October 5, Jaan Toots took over the post.

Fifth shift.

On December 28, 2024, Tootsu was voted out of confidence, and Raik became mayor again. The deputies thereby demonstrated an important property of Narva political sport: the participant does not drop out of the competition, but goes to the bench to wait for the next majority.

Sixth shift.

Two mayors and one exhibition match

After the 2025 elections, Rike was re-elected. This is not considered a change of power: the surname remains the same. In Narva, such an episode can be mistaken for a period of stability if you look quickly and do not open the protocols.

In the spring of 2026, the coalition lost its majority. On June 1, sixteen deputies independently gathered, expressed no confidence in Raik and declared Toots mayor. The other half of the town meeting said the meeting was illegal. The office did not register the decision. Toots received an office opposite Rike, and for some time the city had two versions of power - like a document that two editors simultaneously preserved under the name "final".

We do not include this result in official statistics. It was an exhibition match.

On July 26, the procedure was repeated. Katri Raik was dismissed, and Jaan Toots was elected mayor with sixteen votes. It turned out to be the seventh official shift in ten years.

Of course, each coup was explained solely by the interests of the city. No MP has ever wanted position, influence or a seat on the council of a municipal enterprise. Everyone simply loved Narva so much that they couldn’t let their rivals love her wrong.

In regular sports, the winner is known after the final whistle. In Narva, the whistle means it's time to collect signatures for the next match.

The city dweller can only monitor practical indicators. Has the snow been removed? Is the roof leaking? Is the bus coming? Is it possible to see a doctor? But these disciplines are boring: you have to wait for the result for years, and it is difficult to change the culprits with one vote.

But the mayor is possible.

Therefore, the new city slogan could sound like this: “Narva is a city of quick solutions.” The fine print should include: “The contents of decisions are subject to change without notice.”

Referee protocol