The great snail race. This is how political analysts describe the race for the post of Lithuania’s head of state. With just over two months before the presidential election, the campaigning is sluggish.
On May 12, Lithuanians will cast their votes in the first round of the presidential election. The incumbent Gitanas Nausėda has been strongly leading the polls, followed by Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė and lawyer Ignas Vėgėlė.
Although the election is just over two months away, there are only hints of an active campaign taking place.
“What we see is the great snail race. Everything is slow, everything is happening in some small rooms, in small teams. Let’s be clear – there is no election campaign,” Linas Kontrimas, a PhD student at Vytautas Magnus University, told LRT TV.
“There are many reasons why this has happened, but in short, the political process has become a very shady affair in Lithuania. Presidential elections are no exception. Just to say that President Nausėda is a clear leader is to say nothing,” he added.
According to him, the presidential election campaign is disappointing, and Lithuania needs more debates because only then the voters would hear what the candidates are offering.
Meanwhile, Ainė Ramonaitė, professor at the Institute of International Relations and Political Science at Vilnius University, said that the presidential campaign is a rehearsal for the Seimas elections in the autumn.
“Probably nobody expects to challenge Nausėda seriously. Some parties just don’t want to waste money, and some actors are already thinking about the European Parliament or the Seimas elections,” she said.
According to Matas Baltrukevičius, an analyst at the Vilnius Policy Analysis Institute, a vicious cycle is forming, where candidates do not believe that they can defeat Nausėda, and because they do not believe it, the position of the incumbent president is getting stronger.
“Only Ignas Vėgėlė stands out, as he says that part of his team would work with him in the Presidential Palace if he won. Everyone else seems to have the goal of representing a certain group,” he said.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
