Vilnius: Lithuanians are casting votes in a Presidential election on Sunday at a time when Russian gains on the battlefield in Ukraine are fueling greater fears about Moscow’s intentions, particularly in the strategically important Baltic region.
The popular incumbent, Gitanas Nauseda, is favored to win another five-year term in office. But there are eight candidates running
in all, making it difficult for him or any other candidate to muster the 50% of the votes needed to win outright on Sunday.
In that case, a runoff will be held on May 26.
Polls opened at 7 a.m. and close 8 p.m. (1700 GMT). Results are expected late Sunday night.
The president’s main tasks in Lithuania’s political system are overseeing foreign and security policy, and acting as the supreme commander of the armed forces.
That adds importance to the position in the relatively small nation given that it is located strategically on NATO’s eastern flank as tensions rise between Russia and the West over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Russian exclave of Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea is sandwiched between Lithuania to the north and east, and Poland to the south.