The current president, Gitanas Nauseda, has won the first round of voting in Lithuania’s presidential election but fell short of the needed majority. He will now face off against rival Ingrida Simonyte in a run-off on May 26, a repeat of the 2019 election.
The campaign focused on security issues and increasing defense spending in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Both candidates support boosting defense spending to at least 3 percent of Lithuania’s GDP.
While Nauseda and Simonyte agree on Russia policy, they differ on other issues such as same-sex civil partnerships. Nauseda opposes them while Simonyte, a fiscal conservative, is supportive.
The president in Lithuania has a semi-executive role and represents the country at international summits. The president works alongside the government to set foreign and security policy, can veto laws, and has a say in key appointments.
In the last election, Nauseda narrowly defeated Simonyte in the run-off. Simonyte is also facing a tough challenge in the general election in October as her coalition trails in the polls. Nauseda is optimistic about finding common ground with the Social Democrats, who are likely to be the main challengers.