Change in a time of pandemic: the 2020 parliamentary elections in Lithuania

ENThis article reviews the 2020 parliamentary (Seimas) elections in Lithuania. Unlike many European and neighboring democratic countries, Lithuania’s voters made no radical changes this time. Brand new, populist, radical, Euroskeptic, anti-system, ex-communist, far-right, and far-left parties failed to enter parliament. The party system remained moderately fragmented but polarization did not mar the elections. The Conservatives and two liberal parties returned to power after an eight-year hiatus. No sitting government in Lithuania has ever been reelected since 1990. For the last 12 years, all governments have served full four-year terms. Herein, I will examine the most recent parliamentary elections and the evolution of the electoral system. The characteristics of the electoral contestants and the evaluation of the electoral campaign will be explored along with the election results, indices, and the political aftermath of the 2020 general elections. [...]. [Extract, p. 269]

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