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By Andrius Sytas<\/p>\n
VILNIUS (Reuters) – Lithuania holds presidential elections on Sunday, with incumbent Gitanas Nauseda expected to win after a campaign dominated by security concerns in the post-Soviet state.<\/p>\n
The Baltic nation of 2.8 million people has been a staunch ally of Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 invasion. Like other countries in the region, the NATO and EU member worries it could be Moscow’s next target.<\/p>\n
Nauseda, 60, a former senior economist with Swedish banking group SEB who is not affiliated with any party, won the first round of the election on May 12 with 44% of the votes, short of the 50% he needed for an outright victory.<\/p>\n
He is running against Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, 49, from the ruling centre-right Homeland Union party that has been trailing in opinion polls. She was the only woman out of eight candidates in the first round and came second with 20%.<\/p>\n
Just over half of Lithuanians believe a Russian attack is possible or even very likely, according to a ELTA\/Baltijos Tyrimai poll conducted between February and March. Russia has regularly dismissed the idea that it might attack a NATO member.<\/p>\n
Nauseda told a debate on Tuesday he sees Russia as an enemy. “Our enemies – who even call themselves our enemies, who are enemies of us and all the democratic world – are attempting to destablilize our politics, and we must do all to resist.”<\/p>\n
Both Nauseda and Simonyte support increasing defence spending to at least 3% of Lithuania’s gross domestic product, from the 2.75% planned for this year.<\/p>\n
But Nauseda, who is a social conservative, has clashed with Simonyte on other issues, including whether to give a legal recognition to same-sex civil partnerships, which Nauseda opposes.<\/p>\n
He has said it would make such unions too similar to marriage, which Lithuania’s constitution only allows for a man and a woman.<\/p>\n
Simonyte, a former finance minister and a fiscal hawk, said on Thursday that if she won, “the direction for the country – pro-European, pro-Western – would not change”.<\/p>\n
“But I would like quicker progress, more openness and understanding, larger tolerance to people who are different from us”, she added.<\/p>\n
Lithuania’s president has a semi-executive role, which includes heading the armed forces, chairing the supreme defence and national security policy body and representing the country at European Union and NATO summits.<\/p>\n
The president sets foreign and security policy in tandem with the government, can veto laws and has a say in the appointment of key officials such as judges, the chief prosecutor, the chief of defence and the head of the central bank.<\/p>\n
It will be the second time the two have competed in a presidential run-off. In 2019, Nauseda beat Simonyte with 66% of vote.<\/p>\n
(Reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius; Editing by Andrew Heavens)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n