On Sunday, Lithuania elected its 11 European Parliament representatives. While some politicians will continue their work in Brussels, Lithuania will have six new MEPs.
As in 2019, the Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD) Party won three EP seats. The voters have decided that two conservative MEPs – Andrius Kubilius and Rasa Juknevičienė – will come back to the EP for a second term. Meanwhile, Liudas Mažylis, the leader of the TS-LKD list five years ago, will leave the EP, and the third party’s seat will go to the current Deputy Seimas Speaker Paulius Saudargas.
The Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP) also repeated the result achieved five years ago, winning two EP seats. LSDP leader Vilija Blinkevičiūtė secured another term in Brussels. However, Juozas Olekas will be replaced this time by Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, the party’s honorary president.
In 2019, the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union won two EP seats, dedicated to Bronis Ropė and former basketball player Šarūnas Marčiulionis, who gave up his seat to Stasys Jakeliūnas. Neither of them will come back for a second term. This time, the Farmers and Greens Union will be represented only by former Health Minister, MP Aurelijus Veryga.
There are no changes in the results of the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania – Christian Families Alliance. The party again won one EP seat and will send its leader Waldemar Tomaszewski to Brussels for the fourth term in a row.
Petras Auštrevičius will also represent the Liberals’ Movement in the European Parliament for another five years. Although he was second in this year’s party list, he received enough preference votes to overtake Eugenijus Gentvilas.
The Freedom Party, which took part in the EP election for the first time, won one seat and is sending Dainius Žalimas, former President of the Constitutional Court and the party’s presidential candidate, to Brussels.
The Democratic Union “For Lithuania” also made its debut in the EP election, winning one seat, dedicated to the current EU Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius.
Another Lithuanian newcomer to the EP is Petras Gražulis, a former MP who was impeached and expelled from the Seimas for breaking his oath of office. According to the Lithuanian constitution, an impeached politician is barred from running for parliament or the presidency for 10 years, but there is no such rule for the EP. Gražulis won the EP seat on behalf of the People and Justice Union, which he leads.
In 2019, the Labour Party won one seat in the EP and sent its chairman Viktor Uspaskich to Brussels. However, this year’s election was not successful for the party – it received only 1.63 percent of the votes and will lose its EP mandate.
This was the second time that the EP election in Lithuania was held separately from the presidential election, which translated into a low voter turnout. On Sunday, 28.34 percent of all eligible voters cast their ballots in the election.
Further reading
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
