As foreign minister, he has enjoyed high popularity among Latvians because of his hard stance toward neighbouring Russia and his unwavering support for Ukraine, advocating Kyiv’s accession to both the European Union and NATO.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated Rinkevics, calling him “a true friend” of the war-torn nation.

Latvia, which borders Russia to the east and Belarus to the south-east, regained its independence in 1991 following nearly 50 years of Soviet rule. The new president will be the 11th head of state, counting from the country’s first independence declared in 1918.

At the time he publicly announced his sexuality, Rinkevics pledged to fight towards legalising same-sex marriage, which remains illegal in Latvia.

“I do not believe that something fundamental should change in people’s attitude toward me or other people,” he said in a radio interview at the time. “It is time for us to be more open and honest. Believe me, such decisions are not easy to make and can take a long time.”

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The nation of about 1.9 million people ranks among the worst places in Europe to be an LGBTQ citizen in terms of legal rights, according to an index published by the rainbow advocacy group ILGA-Europe.

In 2019, an EU study found that 45 per cent of Latvians were uncomfortable with the idea of a gay, lesbian or bisexual person in high political office.

Several openly gay figures have risen to positions of power in their countries but as prime minister rather than president, including Ireland’s Leo Varadkar, Luxembourg’s Xavier Bettel, and Serbia’s Ana Brnabic. San Marino, a microstate of 34,000 in central Italy, elected openly gay Paolo Rondelli to be one of its two heads of state, or captains regent, last year.

Unlike in the United States or France, the position of president is ceremonial in many countries. But Rinkevics, a former radio journalist with Lativa’s public broadcaster and a past defence ministry official, will have some executive powers and represents the country internationally.

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