On 8 April 1927, after several rounds of voting, the Saeima elected Gustavs Zemgals as the second President of Latvia – a lawyer, former mayor of Riga, and the man who had chaired the proclamation ceremony of the Republic of Latvia at the National Theatre on 18 November 1918. The vote was decisive – 73 votes in favour and 23 against. Zemgals remained in office until 9 April 1930 and became an example of a restrained president loyal to the traditions of parliamentary democracy.

Zemgals was elected after the death of Latvia’s first President, Jānis Čakste, when the young parliamentary republic needed a unifying and politically acceptable successor. His presidency coincided with the maturation of Latvia’s democracy before the authoritarian coup of 1934.