of the president so removed. Residence Riga Castle is the official residence of the president. Used extensively by the presidents of Latvia during the first period of independence, starting in 1922. In 1935 during Kārlis Ulmanis presidency, Riga Castle was expanded to its now iconic look, with a new "Latvian" tower, it was built to be taller than German churches. During Soviet times Riga Castle hosted a school. In 1994 it was renovated to meet the needs of the president. It has four floors, multiple halls for guests, a big cabinet for the president, multiple museums hosting diplomatic gifts from presidents of other countries. Jūrmala Residence is the official retreat for the president of the Latvia. Built in the Soviet times, to host high ranking Soviet officials during their stay in Latvia, it was renovated for the needs of president of Latvia in 1993. Andris Bērziņš was the only president that refused to use Jūrmala residence due to its past as a guest house for Soviet officials. It has 3 floors. It hosts a big park, an indoor swimming pool, a guest room for meeting diplomatic guests, a personal beach in the shore of Jūrmala. It has a basketball hoop, that was built for the needs of president Zatlers. Official guest house of the parliament and the president was renovated in the 1990s for guest purposes. During the renovation of Jurmala Residence in 2019 president Levits stayed in a guest house. During renovations in Riga Castle president Ulmanis and president Gorbunovs in the 1990s used this house as the official residence. Travel The president uses a Lexus car for his or her everyday travel. For longer trips, they take a Latvian armed forces helicopter. For international travel, the president does not have an official plane and uses an AirBaltic plane, a Latvian state-owned airline. Post-presidency After the presidency, the president may retire from politics. Zatlers and Gorbunovs continued on in politics as faces of the multiple parties. For example, Gorbunovs was the face of the political party "New Way" in 1995, and Zatlers of the Reform Party in 2012. Every president receives their office, staff, and a car as well as security and home in center of the city of Riga. Former presidents get a pension according to the salary. Vīķe-Freiberga continues to give lectures and educate on politics in Latvia and abroad. List of the presidents Parties Status See