On Monday, a proposal to abolish kindergarten fees failed in the Tallinn City Council because opposition parties Center Party and EKRE and coalition party Eesti 200 faction also voted against it. Thirty-seven voted in favor and 37 voted against.

"While summer is usually the silly season, in Tallinn things are fermenting so much that half the country reeks of something strange," Õhtuleht newspaper wrote.

"One can conclude that the political flea circus has continued and taken on unprecedented forms," Postimees said.

"It was a classic and, at that, poorly planned political stunt. There is no other rational explanation to be found here besides the Reform Party's desperate attempt to boost its ratings," Eesti Päevaleht /Delfi wrote in its editorial.

Õhtuleht and EPL place the main burden of criticism and blame for the events on Reform.

"At this point, there is not even much of a functioning city government left, and that is entirely the Reform Party's doing. They acted in direct contradiction to their declared ideology, issuing an ultimatum to abolish kindergarten fees," EPL wrote.

Õhtuleht dedicates most of its editorial to Reform, noting that a party with a right-wing platform has behaved in a way that raises doubts about its political orientation, financial literacy, and grasp of political strategy.

The paper pointed out that while Reform is demanding the abolition of kindergarten fees in Tallinn, the same has not been done in places like Tartu or Rae Municipality, where they have long held power. Promises of free services in Tallinn, according to Õhtuleht, are already creating divisions within the party itself. "The party that once mastered political strategy now shows, sadly, just how rapid a decline can be," the paper added.

EPL emphasized in its editorial that Tallinn residents deserve better leadership: "A new quality of leadership. Above all, a new political culture. A rainbow coalition requires that you work with the cards you have been dealt. You try to find common ground to convince voters: we can offer better through democratic cooperation than the former hegemony."

In this context, EPL argued that other parties also deserve criticism. "How can the Center Party still claim to support families with children when it voted against its own long-held mantra for purely political reasons? Did Eesti 200 really see no need to compromise to keep the rainbow coalition together? In hindsight, wouldn't it have been more appropriate to offer the mayor's seat to someone more capable than the Social Democrat Jevgeni Ossinovski?" the paper asked.

"It is a good thing the stunt failed. Otherwise, Tallinn would have been trapped in the ego trip of a party pursuing clumsy politics and willing to do anything for ratings. Abolishing kindergarten fees, snow removal, missing trash bins, bike lanes — all these issues can be discussed, but none should be packaged into a pre-election ultimatum," EPL concluded.

"Now, paradoxically, all sides have the opportunity to restart the conversation and turn it into something sensible," Postimees noted.

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