Only registered political parties have the right to submit lists of candidates, the exception being the local government council elections where this right is also granted to election coalitions. District mandates are divided according to the lists, and compensation mandates are divided according to the national list or the list of the rural municipality or city. Alternate members are appointed and additional mandates are registered.

Riigikogu elections

A political party submits a district list of candidates for every electoral district. The order of candidates in the list is specified by the political party. The number of candidates in an electoral district may exceed the number of mandates in the electoral district by up to two candidates, meaning that the maximum number of candidates in the national list of party is 125. 

In the national list of candidates all the candidates nominated in the electoral district are ranked by the party.The national list is the basis for distributing compensation mandates.

Local government council elections

A political party or an election coalition also submits a district list of candidates and if there is more than one electoral district in the municipality or the city, the party also submits a general list of all the candidates in the rural municipality or the city, where all the candidates nominated in the rural municipality or the city are ranked.

European Parliament elections

A political party submits a list of candidates, ranking up to 12 candidates.