2002–03 Lithuanian presidential election

none March 2019 Lithuania 1988 presidential 1997–98 Lithuanian presidential election 1997–98 22 December 2002 (first round)5 January 2003 (second round) 2004 Lithuanian presidential election 2004 53.92% (first round)52.65% (second round) Paksas March 2003 (cropped).jpg Rolandas Paksas LDP FFF500 777,769 54.71% Julius Numavicius with Valdas Adamkus (cropped) 2004.jpg Valdas Adamkus Independent politician 643,870 45.29% Results of Lithuanian presidential election, 2002-2003 (second round).png Results (second round)Legend:red – Rolandas Paksasblue – Valdas Adamkus President Valdas Adamkus Independent politician Rolandas Paksas LDP Presidential elections were held in Lithuania on 22 December 2002, with a second round on 5 January 2003. Incumbent President Valdas Adamkus ran for reelection alongside sixteen other candidates, the largest field of presidential candidates in the country's history. Though Adamkus held a large lead over his closest opponent, Rolandas Paksas of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), in the first round of the election,Republic of Lithuania: Election for President IFES Election Guide Paksas defeated Adamkus in the second round with 54.71% of the vote.Republic of Lithuania: Election for President IFES Election Guide The election is considered to be one of the most important presidential elections in Lithuanian history since 1990.Bakūnaitė Gintarė Rinkimai, pakeitę Lietuvos istoriją: kaip Paksas "ėmė apačias" https://www.delfi.lt/multimedija/pamokos/rinkimai-pakeite-lietuvos-istorija-kaip-paksas-eme-apacias-80161559 Delfi lt 22 February 2019 Paksas's victory and subsequent impeachment in 2004 led to the rise of the Order and Justice party. Background Presidential powers President of Lithuania The Lithuanian president has somewhat more executive authority than their counterparts in neighboring Estonia and Latvia; the Lithuanian president's function is similar to that of the presidents of France and Romania. Similarly to them, but unlike presidents in a fully presidential system such as the United States, the Lithuanian president generally has the most authority in foreign affairs. In addition to the customary diplomatic powers of Heads of State, namely receiving the letters of credence of foreign ambassadors and signing treaties, the president determines Lithuania's basic foreign policy guidelines. The president is also the commander-in-chief of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, and accordingly heads the State Defense Council and has the right to appoint the Chief of Defence (subject to Seimas consent).Presidential Functions | President of the Republic of Lithuania The president also has a significant role in domestic policy, possessing the right to submit bills to the Seimas and to veto laws passed by it, appointing the prime minister and approving the government formed by them, and also having the right to dissolve the Seimas and call snap elections following a successful motion of no confidence or if the Seimas refuses to approve the government's budget within sixty days. However, the next elected Seimas may retaliate by calling for an earlier presidential election.Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania – Seimas site In addition, according to a resolution by the Constitutional Court of Lithuania in 1998, the president is required by law to nominate the candidate of the parliamentary majority to the office of prime minister.Jastramskis Mažvydas Ką gali Lietuvos prezidentas? https://www.prezidentogalios.lt/ka-gali-lietuvos-prezidentas Prezidentogalios.lt lt 3 April 2024 The president also holds informal power, as the office of president is generally more trusted by the populace according to approval polling, and Lithuanian presidents historically blocked legislation and forced the resignation of prime ministers (such as Gediminas Vagnorius in 1998). Electoral system The president is elected using the two-round system. To win in the first round, a candidate requires an absolute majority of all votes cast (including invalid votes) and either voter turnout to be above 50% or for their vote share to be equivalent to at least one-third of the number of registered voters. If no candidate wins in the first round, a second round is required, featuring the top two candidates. While some candidates belong to and/or are supported by a political party, the office of the president is formally non-partisan.http://www.electionguide.org/elections/id/3146/ Lithuania: Election for President IFES Election Guide Citizens of Lithuania at least 40 years of age whose at least one parent was also a citizen (natural-born-citizen clause), who have lived in Lithuania for at least three years prior, are not serving a prison sentence, are not on active duty in the Lithuanian Armed Forces, are not bound to any other country by an oath and have never been impeached, are allowed to run for president. Each candidate must collect at least 20 thousand signatures by Lithuanian citizens to be able to run for election.Lietuvos Respublikos Prezidentas https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/lietuvos-respublikos-prezidentas/ Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija LithuanianAndrukaitytė Milena VRK patvirtino, kad Šimonytė surinko parašus prezidento rinkimams LRT 7 March 2024 https://www.lrt.lt/naujienos/lietuvoje/2/2216459/vrk-patvirtino-kad-simonyte-surinko-parasus-prezidento-rinkimams lt 27 March 2024 Previous election The previous election was held in 1997 and 1998. The winner of the election was independent candidate Valdas Adamkus, who defeated deputy general prosecutor and independent candidate Artūras Paulauskas and Homeland Union chairman Vytautas Landsbergis. The election was noted for irregularities and violent incidents - Adamkus's chief of staff Raimundas Mieželis was beaten by hooligans prior to the first round, Paulauskas claimed that he was followed by secret service who answered to Landsbergis, and the narrow result in the second round raised allegations of electoral fraud.Pūkenė Rūta Prezidento rinkimai. Tai buvo kova be taisyklių: sumuštas štabo vadovas, pasikėsinimas ir sąvartyne rasti balsai https://www.delfi.lt/multimedija/pamokos/prezidento-rinkimai-tai-buvo-kova-be-taisykliu-sumustas-stabo-vadovas-pasikesinimas-ir-savartyne-rasti-balsai-81118697 Delfi lt 18 May 2019 Candidates 20 individuals applied to be candidates in the election. Three of them, Stanislovas Buškevičius (Young Lithuania), Kazimieras Uoka and Vytautas Kundrotas did not provide the signatures necessary to be registered. Eight of the registered candidates were independents and nine belonged to political parties at time of registration.Pretendentai būti kandidatais į Respublikos Prezidentus https://www.vrk.lt/statiniai/puslapiai/rinkimai/2002/Prezidentas/pretendentai_buti_kandidatais.htm Central Electoral Commission of Lithuania lt 2002 Rolandas Paksas Paksas was a former national aerobatics champion who had at time of the election served for two times as Prime Minister of Lithuania, first from May to October 1999 and second time from October 2000 to June 2001. Originally leading a Homeland Union cabinet in 1999, Paksas resigned in protest to the sale of the Mažeikiai oil refinery to the American Williams Companies - though he was forced to leave the party, his popularity soared and he was later appointed as an advisor on energy policy to the President.Tvaskienė Jurga "Širdžių premjero" skrydis į prezidento postą: nesisteminiu politiku vadintas Paksas davė ateities pamoką https://www.delfi.lt/multimedija/pamokos/sirdziu-premjero-skrydis-i-prezidento-posta-nesisteminiu-politiku-vadintas-paksas-dave-ateities-pamoka-76710545 Delfi lt 6 February 2018 Paksas then joined the Liberal Union, a small classical liberal party which was connected to the fraudulent EBSW business conglomerate.Igorius Algirdas Liberalų partijos įkūrėjas: verslo grupės liberalus užvaldė dar 1995 m. https://www.lrt.lt/naujienos/lietuvoje/2/215582/liberalu-partijos-ikurejas-verslo-grupes-liberalus-uzvalde-dar-1995-m LRT lt 10 June 2018 Under his leadership, the party grew from 1 to 34 seats in the 2000 Lithuanian parliamentary election. Encouraged by Adamkus,Prezidentas renkasi naująją politiką https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/lithuania/prezidentas-renkasi-naujaja-politika-89546 Delfi lt 10 October 2000 the Liberals formed a "New Politics" coalition (Lithuanian: "Naujosios politikos" koalicija) with the New Union (Social Liberals), with supply and confidence from the Peasants and New Democratic Party Union, forming Paksas Cabinet II. It was the first cabinet in Lithuania's history since 1990 which had neither the Homeland Union or the Democratic Labour Party of Lithuania in its composition. It was a minority government and collapsed on 18 June 2001, when all New Union ministers withdrew from the government and the party announced its intention to form a government with the Social Democratic Party. A few months later, he resigned as chairman of the Liberal Union after criticism from the party's council. Paksas and his loyalists subsequently left the party and established the Liberal Democratic Party.R.Pakso bendražygiai kurs Liberalų demokratų partiją https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/lithuania/rpakso-bendrazygiai-kurs-liberalu-demokratu-partija-731837 Delfi lt 21 January 2002 Paksas ran as the party's presidential candidate. Valdas Adamkus Adamkus, a former official of the Environmental Protection Agency and a member of the Lithuanian diaspora during the Cold War, was elected President in 1998. During his term, Lithuania progressed in its goal to join the European Union and NATO, but internal politics were fragile. After the collapse of the cabinet of Gediminas Vagnorius due to his conflict with the president, Adamkus promoted Paksas as a protégé.Pūkenė Rūta Prezidento rinkimai. Pirmuosius Pakso politinius žingsnius matė iš labai arti: jie jo visiškai neįvertino https://www.delfi.lt/multimedija/pamokos/prezidento-rinkimai-pirmuosius-pakso-politinius-zingsnius-mate-is-labai-arti-jie-jo-visiskai-neivertino-81068135 Delfi lt 4 May 2019 Adamkus also encourage the formation of the short-lived "New Politics" coalition. Artūras Paulauskas Paulauskas was Adamkus's opponent in the 1998 presidential election and afterwards founded the New Union (Social Liberals), which won the second largest number of seats in the 2000 parliamentary election and formed the "New Politics" coalition with Paksas's Liberal Union.Naujoji sąjunga https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/naujoji-sajunga/ Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija lt Paulauskas was elected as the Speaker of the Seimas and was endorsed as the coalition's candidate in the country's next presidential election - however, the deal was rescinded after the collapse of the coalition and Paksas's decision to run for the election himself.Pūkenė Rūta Prezidento rinkimai. Pirmuosius Pakso politinius žingsnius matė iš labai arti: jie jo visiškai neįvertino https://www.delfi.lt/multimedija/pamokos/prezidento-rinkimai-pirmuosius-pakso-politinius-zingsnius-mate-is-labai-arti-jie-jo-visiskai-neivertino-81068135 Delfi lt 4 May 2019 Nors 2001 metų balandį R. Paksas partijos nariams pareiškė, kad, kol bus premjeru, į prezidentus nekandidatuos, ir parėmė Artūrą Paulauską, situacija netruko pasikeisti. Tų pačių metų birželį valdančioji koalicija žlugo ir 6 socialdemokratų ministrai išėjo iš Vyriausybės. R. Paksas vėl paskelbė atsistatydinantis, po kelių mėnesių pasitraukė iš LSS pirmininko posto, dar vėliau – ir iš opozicinės Liberalų frakcijos Seime. Before the election, Paulauskas voiced his hesitation to participate, as the chaotic nature of the newly elected parliament, which he served as the Speaker of, caused a downfall of his approval ratings.A.Paulauskas prarandą norą būti prezidentu https://www.delfi.lt/archive/apaulauskas-praranda-nora-buti-prezidentu.d?id=321815 Delfi lt 22 May 2001 In spite of this, he, alongside chairman of the Social Democratic Party Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas, was seen as the most realistic opponent to Adamkus before the election.Pūkenė Rūta Prezidento rinkimai. Pirmuosius Pakso politinius žingsnius matė iš labai arti: jie jo visiškai neįvertino https://www.delfi.lt/multimedija/pamokos/prezidento-rinkimai-pirmuosius-pakso-politinius-zingsnius-mate-is-labai-arti-jie-jo-visiskai-neivertino-81068135 Delfi lt 4 May 2019 Artėjančiuose prezidento rinkimuose kaip bene rimčiausi V. Adamkaus įpėdiniai įvardyti Algirdas Brazauskas ir Artūras Paulauskas. 2001 m. A. Brazauskas grįžo į politiką ir iš karto buvo išrinktas Lietuvos socialdemokratų partijos pirmininku, po pusmečio Seimas jį patvirtino Vyriausybės vadovu. Savo ruožtu A. Paulauskas 1997 m. prezidento rinkimuose nuo V. Adamkaus atsiliko tik 0,8 proc. balsų. Despite his party being in a coalition with the Social Democrats, they did not endorse Paulauskas and instead ran Vytenis Andriukaitis as a candidate. He was backed by the party's local organizations from the left flank as a symbol that the party was not entirely taken over by the Democratic Labour Party of Lithuania since their merger in 2001.Krupavicius Algis December 2003 Lithuania European Journal of Political Research 42 7–8 1010–20 10.1111/j.0304-4130.2003.00128.x Vytautas Šerėnas Šerėnas was the host of the political satire TV show "Bicycle News" (Lithuanian: "Dviračio žinios") and ran as a satirical political candidate. Among his promises on the election trail was the construction of a bridge between Klaipėda and Stockholm, a "faster" tram line between Klaipėda and Vilnius, and a mandatory purchase of a portion of cepelinai by every citizen.Vaitelė Tomas Nuo sostinės Visagine iki cepelinų vietoj vizų: kaip Šerėnas 2002 metais rinkimų šou kūrė https://www.lrt.lt/naujienos/lietuvoje/2/2268863/nuo-sostines-visagine-iki-cepelinu-vietoj-vizu-kaip-serenas-2002-metais-rinkimu-sou-kure lt 11 May 2024 In spite of this, some claimed that his campaign was more measured and understanding of presidential powers than of some other candidates.Makaraitytė Indrė V.Šerėnas – realybės atspindys? https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/atgimimas/vserenas-realybes-atspindys-1617710 Delfi lt 27 November 2002 Arūnas Valinskas, who later founded the National Resurrection Party, claimed that he convinced Šerėnas to run in order to reveal the absurdity of the election.Tubys Lukrecijus V. Šerėnui šalies vadovu tapti siūlęs A. Valinskas įvardijo jo turėtą pranašumą net prieš dabartinius kandidatus https://www.lrytas.lt/lietuvosdiena/aktualijos/2019/05/12/news/v-serenui-salies-vadovu-tapti-siules-a-valinskas-ivardijo-jo-tureta-pranasuma-net-pries-dabartinius-kandidatus-10320505 Lietuvos rytas lt 12 May 2019 Other candidates Several candidates represented various political parties. Vytenis Andriukaitis represented the Social Democratic Party, Kazimira Prunskienė ran as the candidate of the Peasants and New Democratic Party Union, and Eugenijus Gentvilas ran as the candidate of the Liberal Union. Juozas Edvardas Petraitis, an Australian-Lithuanian businessman, ran as an independent candidate and was the wealthiest candidate in the race, with a declared total wealth of 145 million litas. The election was contested by two brothers - Algimantas Matulevičius and Vytautas Matulevičius, both of whom ran as independents. Campaign Prior to the election, Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas, the chairman of the Social Democratic Party who returned to politics in 2001, was seen as the most realistic challenger to Adamkus. As Brazauskas did not run, and Adamkus enjoyed high approval ratings at the beginning of the race, he conducted a passive campaign.Pūkenė Rūta Prezidento rinkimai. Pirmuosius Pakso politinius žingsnius matė iš labai arti: jie jo visiškai neįvertino https://www.delfi.lt/multimedija/pamokos/prezidento-rinkimai-pirmuosius-pakso-politinius-zingsnius-mate-is-labai-arti-jie-jo-visiskai-neivertino-81068135 Delfi lt 4 May 2019 Pabandykime į tai pažvelgti iš V. Adamkaus perspektyvos. Apklausos rodė, kad visuomenės pasitikėjimas juo siekė 80 proc., 2002 m. V. Adamkus buvo išrinktas metų žmogumi. Prezidentas palankiai vertintas dėl Lietuvai atsivėrusių galimybių tapti ES ir NATO nare, jo reputacijai nekenkė įtarimai korupcija ar ryšiais su Rusija. Greičiausiai nereikėtų stebėtis, kodėl esant tokiai situacijai – aukšti reitingai, pagrindinio konkurento atsitraukimas – V. Adamkus nusprendė nesiimti agresyvios rinkiminės kampanijos. The Adamkus campaign was run by Artūras Zuokas, Darius Kuolys and Albinas Januška. According to correspondent Audrius Bačiulis, the campaign was ineffective and its leading personalities lacked cooperation, whereas the president and his staff were certain that victory was inevitable: Long before these elections, they were certain - George W. Bush will fly over, wave his hand from the steps of the Town Hall, Lithuania is invited to NATO, and the elections are in the pocket. Audrius Bačiulis According to a 2001 summer poll by the polling agency Baltijos tyrimai, 3.4% of the respondents stated that they would vote for Paksas in the presidential election, and according to a Vilmorus poll at the same period, only 33.9% of the respondents viewed him positively. Paksas formed a team led by journalist Aurelijus Katkevičius, described as "Paksas's political sculptor".Gudavičius Stasys Prezidento komanda tirpsta https://m.kauno.diena.lt/naujienos/lietuva/salies-pulsas/prezidento-komanda-tirpsta-440950 Kauno diena lt 30 March 2004 Katkevičius's strategy was to establish Paksas as a strongman who would restore law and order against the more passive Adamkus - on the campaign trail, Paksas became known for radical promises such as restoring the death sentence, strictly controlling the actions of the Government of Lithuania, the country's spending and the size of pensions, and ordering police to patrol schools with detection dogs. To bypass the media, which he believed to be hostile to him, Paksas visited voters directly, often traveling via helicopter, which earned him the nickname "Flying Rolandas". The helicopter was loaned to Paksas by Russian businessman and owner of the aviation company Aviabaltika Yuri Borisov. Borisov also donated 1.2 million litas ($400,000) to Paksas's election campaign.Vireliūnaitė Lauryna Dešimt metų nuo Paksogeito pradžios: skandalas, kuris ilgam pasodino Rolandą Paksą ant atsarginių suolo https://www.15min.lt/naujiena/aktualu/lietuva/desimt-metu-nuo-paksogeito-pradzios-skandalas-kuris-ilgam-pasodino-rolanda-paksa-ant-atsarginiu-suolo-56-381045 15min.lt lt 30 October 2013 Paksas also organized aviation stunts, the most famous of which was his flight under the bridge over the Neris river on 3 October 2002.R.Paksas - rekordinio skrydžio po tiltu dalyvis (video) https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/lithuania/rpaksas-rekordinio-skrydzio-po-tiltu-dalyvis-video-1422816 Delfi lt 3 October 2002 Paksas's success in the election has been attributed to the organized structure of his campaign and its professionalism, which was unprecedented in Lithuanian politics at the time, as well as his campaign's large financial resources, which, during his impeachment proceedings, were counted to have been 18 to 19 million litas. Results Valdas Adamkus Independent 514154 643870 Rolandas Paksas Liberal Democratic Party 284559 777769 Artūras Paulauskas New Union (Social Liberals) 120238 Vytautas Šerėnas Independent 112215 Vytenis Andriukaitis Social Democratic Party 105584 Kazimira Prunskienė Peasants and New Democratic Party Union 72925 Juozas Edvardas Petraitis Independent 54139 Eugenijus Gentvilas Liberal Union 44562 Julius Veselka Lithuanian People's Union 32293 Algimantas Matulevičius Independent 32137 Kazys Bobelis Lithuanian Christian Democrats 27613 Vytautas Matulevičius Independent 26888 Kęstutis Glaveckas Lithuanian Centre Union 7554 Vytautas Šustauskas Lithuanian Liberty Union 5372 Vytautas Bernatonis Independent 3546 Algirdas Pilvelis Independent 2074 Rimantas Jonas Dagys Social Democracy 2000 1264 19419 14683 2719608 2727805 Central Election Commission, Central Election Commission References External links Krupavicius Algis December 2003 Lithuania European Journal of Political Research 42 7–8 1010–20 10.1111/j.0304-4130.2003.00128.x 2002–03 Lithuanian presidential elections VRK lt Lithuania Presidential election Lithuania Presidential election Category:Presidential elections in Lithuania Lithuanian presidential election Lithuanian presidential election