Isamaa kicks out Tartu councilor over Holocaust remarks
Isamaa's Tartu city council faction announced it has expelled a council deputy who said if he had a child, that child would have "unfortunately missed out on the Holocaust."
The council deputy, Kris Kärner, recently posted on TikTok, making statements about a hypothetical child he could have raised and violent actions which that child could have taken part in. Kärner had made controversial remarks via social media in the recent past too.
Isamaa is in office in Tartu with the Reform Party; Kärner had left the party after the October 2025 local elections, where he won a seat, only to rejoin the party's Tartu council faction at the end of the year.
Isamaa's Tartu faction chair and regional leader Kaspar Kokk said that Kärner's latest remarks show a lack of understanding of what is appropriate for a politician and, more broadly, for a public figure.
"Unfortunately, his behavior leaves us no other option, and together with the members of the faction we decided to expel him from our ranks. I hope that sooner or later he will understand that words have consequences, but with this decision our cooperation has come to an end," Kokk said.
Delfi reported on a video circulating on TikTok where Kärner states if he had a child now, that child would have "unfortunately missed out on the Holocaust," adding that the child could nonetheless bully trans children in school and practice firing at a range.
Kärner, 29, said if he had a child "at the same age as my father had me, my child would be 10 this year, which would actually be a relatively positive boost in terms of being able to use him normally in all kinds of endeavors."
"A ten-year-old, you can already talk to him about world affairs a little. He/she can already bully pdds (Pedophiles – ed.), transsexuals and all other minorities at school. They could already shoot a pump-action shotgun at a firing range, for example. And they could look in the mirror and say that, 'unfortunately, I missed out on the Holocaust,'" Kärner added.
A second participant in the clip whose identity is unknown added, "But our time will come," which Kärner agreed with, adding: "I think we need young politicians."
The Estonian Jewish Community (EJC) has expressed deep concern about Kärner's recent remarks regarding the Holocaust.
"Such statements are extremely irresponsible, offensive to historical memory, and hurt the feelings of those for whom the tragedy of the Holocaust is not an abstract chapter of history but part of their family's fate. In a modern, democratic society, such remarks are unacceptable, and we strongly condemn them," the EJC's board said in a statement.
The EJC also said the incident is not an isolated event but points towards a disturbing trend.
"We are convinced that such incidents point to troubling trends in political culture. /…/ We call on Estonia's state and political leaders to give such statements a clear and unequivocal assessment and to initiate a serious discussion about adopting a possible law that would provide for criminal liability for Holocaust denial and for the abuse of this topic for political or other purposes," the statement added.
Background:
Kärner had previously left Isamaa shortly before the October 2025 local elections. Following those elections, past social media posts, often under the username Istoprocent and calling for political violence resurfaced. His posts had included calling for the execution by firing squad of members of the Social Democratic Party (SDE) and a TikTok video advocating deporting Black people from Estonia. Following his statements, Tartu deputy mayor Elo Kiivet (SDE) filed a report with the Police and Border Guard Board (PPA).
Kärner later apologized publicly, asked for forgiveness, and pledged to learn from the episode. Kärner won 1,597 votes at the October elections — the fourth-highest result in Tartu. He announced he would join the Isamaa council faction but not rejoin the party itself, remaining critical of its leadership, which he said orchestrated his "political execution."
After the election, Isamaa's Tartu district board indeed invited him to join its council faction, and in December, Kärner joined the Isamaa faction on the city council. The party's leader in Tartu, former government minister Tõnis Lukas, left the party's Tartu faction in protest over the inclusion of Kärner.
Isamaa has formed a coalition with the previously dominant Reform Party in Tartu. Both Isamaa and Reform won 15 seats each, with Urmas Klaas (Reform) staying on as mayor.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Marko Tooming
