Nils Muiznieks (Latvia) was elected third Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights by the Organisation’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) at its plenary session in Strasbourg.

He obtained 120 of the votes cast in the first round, an absolute majority.

From November 2002 to December 2004, Mr Muižnieks held the post of Special Assignments Minister for Social Integration Affairs in the Latvian Government. Since 2005 he has been the member for Latvia of the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) and became its Chairman in January 2010.

He is currently Director of the Advanced Social and Political Research Institute (ASPRI) at the Faculty of Social Sciences in Riga, says PACE website.