Prime Minister Ingrida Simonite has conceded defeat in the final round of the Baltic country’s presidential election.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda has declared victory in the final round of the Baltic nation’s presidential election. That’s because partial results showed him well ahead in a two-way race with Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte.
Nauseda, 60, won about three-quarters of the vote in a vote taken at nearly 90% of polling stations on Sunday, followed by Simonite, 49, of the ruling centre-right Homeland Union party. It was.
Simonyte conceded defeat and congratulated Nauseda in comments to reporters.
This is the second time Nauseda and Simonite have participated in a presidential runoff election. In 2019, Nauseda beat Simonyte with 66% of the vote.
As president, Nauseda has a semi-executive role, including commander-in-chief of the armed forces, chairman of the Defense and National Security Policy Organization, and representing the country at NATO and European Union summits.
The former chief economist at Swedish banking group SEB, who is not affiliated with any political party, won the first round of elections on May 12 with 44% of the vote, short of the 50% he needed for an outright victory.
Simonite was the only woman among the eight candidates in the first round of voting and came in second place with 20% of the approval rating.
Both Nauseda and Simonyte support increasing defense spending to at least 3% of Lithuania’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022, up from the 2.75% planned for this year.
Lithuania, like other Baltic states, fears it could become Moscow’s next target. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he has no intention of attacking NATO members.
Nauseda’s uneasy relationship with Simonyte has been in the spotlight during foreign policy debates, especially Lithuania’s relationship with China.
Relations between the two countries were strained in 2021 when Vilnius allowed Taiwan to open a de facto embassy in the island’s name. This was a departure from the normal diplomatic practice of using the name of the capital Taipei to avoid angering Beijing.
As China, which considers autonomous Taiwan its own territory, downgraded diplomatic relations with Vilnius and blocked exports, some Lithuanian politicians called for restoration of relations for the sake of the economy.
