Lithuania’s Social Democratic Party on Sunday won it first parliamentary elections in 12 years as voters turned to the opposition to address soaring disparities in the Baltic nation.
Social Democrats received 19.4 percent of the vote, putting the party in pole position to form the next government, with the ruling conservatives from the Homeland Union a close second at 18 percent, the final results showed.
The first round of voting showed the opposition has successfully tapped into rising discontent among the voters living outside relatively affluent cities like the capital, Vilnius, who have seen their incomes, pensions and social benefits eroded by a period of double-digit inflation.
Photo: Reuters
Income inequality in Lithuania, a country of 2.8 million wedged between Belarus and the Baltic Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, is the second-highest in the EU.
The anti-establishment mood has fueled the rise of an upstart party, the Dawn of Nemunas, whose leader is on trial for making anti-Semitic remarks in his criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza. The party came in third with 15 percent of the vote.
The Social Democrats have pledged to keep the Dawn of Nemunas under Remigijus Zemaitaitis out of potential coalition talks. However, his party might still emerge as a kingmaker, further complicating the Social Democrats’ task as it cobbles together a majority in a fragmented parliament. A total of six parties entered the legislature.
A return to power for the Social Democrats could see Vilija Blinkeviciute, a former social affairs minister, become the prime minister. Currently a lawmaker in the European Parliament, the 64-year-old is credited with raising pensions during her stint in government from 2000 to 2008.
Blinkeviciute said she sees her party building a ruling majority with two other center-left leaning partners of Union of Democrats “For Lithuania” and Lithuania’s Farmers and Greens.
Still, the plans might be complicated by personal animosity between the leaders of the two junior parties that vowed not to work together ahead of the election.
The shift in the political landscape should become clearer after Lithuanians return to choose the remaining half of the country’s legislators in a second round of elections on Oct. 27.
“We still have serious work to do in the second round and we hope for a truly good result,” Blinkeviciute said yesterday. “We hope that after consolidating results in the second round it will be enough to form a coalition of three parties.”
The change of guard is unlikely to affect Lithuania’s position as one of the most vocal critics of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Parties generally agree that the country needs to increase defense spending, currently at 3.2 percent of economic output, to prevent Moscow from potentially challenging NATO borders.
Conflicting demands might leave the next government with some hard fiscal choices. Low pensions and limited coverage of social benefits have driven up poverty and income inequality, the European Commission said in a June report.
The Social Democrats in power could also strengthen Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda, who was elected for a second term earlier this year and has had frosty relations with the Homeland Union leader, Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Gabrielius Landsbergis.
OPTIMISTIC: A Philippine Air Force spokeswoman said the military believed the crew were safe and were hopeful that they and the jet would be recovered A Philippine Air Force FA-50 jet and its two-person crew are missing after flying in support of ground forces fighting communist rebels in the southern Mindanao region, a military official said yesterday. Philippine Air Force spokeswoman Colonel Consuelo Castillo said the jet was flying “over land” on the way to its target area when it went missing during a “tactical night operation in support of our ground troops.” While she declined to provide mission specifics, Philippine Army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala confirmed that the missing FA-50 was part of a squadron sent “to provide air support” to troops fighting communist rebels in
PROBE: Last week, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against presidential candidate Calin Georgescu accusing him of supporting fascist groups Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital on Saturday in the latest anti-government demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the EU country last year. Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flags and chanting slogans such as “down with the government” and “thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the frontrunner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), which organized the protest,
ECONOMIC DISTORTION? The US commerce secretary’s remarks echoed Elon Musk’s arguments that spending by the government does not create value for the economy US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Sunday said that government spending could be separated from GDP reports, in response to questions about whether the spending cuts pushed by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency could possibly cause an economic downturn. “You know that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Lutnick said on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures. “They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.” Doing so could potentially complicate or distort a fundamental measure of the US economy’s health. Government spending is traditionally included in the GDP because
Hundreds of people in rainbow colors gathered on Saturday in South Africa’s tourist magnet Cape Town to honor the world’s first openly gay imam, who was killed last month. Muhsin Hendricks, who ran a mosque for marginalized Muslims, was shot dead last month near the southern city of Gqeberha. “I was heartbroken. I think it’s sad especially how far we’ve come, considering how progressive South Africa has been,” attendee Keisha Jensen said. Led by motorcycle riders, the mostly young crowd walked through the streets of the coastal city, some waving placards emblazoned with Hendricks’s image and reading: “#JUSTICEFORMUHSIN.” No arrest
RSS