The work of the new government begins: the first business day of the new Seimas, great challenges await

The secret ballot challenge

The coalition agreement was signed on Monday by the National Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats (TS-LKD), the Liberal Movement of the Republic of Lithuania and the Freedom Party. The new ruling majority decided to nominate Viktorija Čmilytė – Nielsen, president of the Liberal Movement, as spokesperson for the Seimas.

According to the Statute of the Seimas, up to 7 Vice Presidents of the Seimas – Vice Presidents of the Seimas can be elected. The new number must be decided by a new majority. The president of the Seimas, the vice-presidents and the leader of the opposition form the Board of the Seimas.

Each parliamentary party may nominate candidates for vice presidents, who will be the names; still unclear.

All that is known is that the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP) will appoint the party chairman, Gintautas Paluckas, to this post. They are approved by secret ballot, which is a great challenge for some parliamentarians.

It is likely that neither Ramūnas Karbauskis, the leader of the Lithuanian Green and Peasant Union (LVŽS) who remains in the opposition, nor Gabrielius Landsbergis, the president of the TS-LKD, will join the Seimas Board. They are unlikely to get the support they need.

This situation also occurred in the first session of the old Seimas. The LSDP delegated former Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius to Vice Presidents of the Seimas, but after a secret ballot, it became clear that he would not take this position, there were not enough votes.

Until the ruling coalition divides the portfolios of the ministries, it is not clear who will lead the largest faction of the National Union. If Landsbergis negotiates a ministerial post, another faction leader will have to be found.

A new faction and Squirrel as leader of the opposition?

How Delphi Ramūnas Karbauskis reported on Wednesday that LVŽS did not have such a large faction that it could automatically appoint an opposition leader. The current Prime Minister Saulius Skvernelis could become him.

Therefore, the largest opposition faction of the Seimas will have to negotiate with other factions about a candidate for opposition leaders.

Another new faction may form in the Seimas on Friday.

In it, as the news portal writes lrytas.lt, the joint work would be carried out by three representatives of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Labor Party (LSDDP) who joined the Seimas: Jonas Pinskus, Zigmantas Balčytis and Andrius Palionis, Algirdas Butkevičius, who participated in the elections with the Green Party, as well as Petras Gražulis and Domas Griškevi.

7 parliamentarians are enough to form a political group.

A. Butkevičius on Thursday Delphi He said he still doesn’t know where he will work at the Seimas. According to him, no decisions have been made yet, it will be done on Friday.

The faction that does not form the ruling coalition can decide whether to declare itself in opposition or not.

According to the Statute of the Seimas, the elder of an opposition faction or coalition of factions can declare himself leader of the opposition if the faction or coalition unites more than half of the Seimas members belonging to the minority of the Seimas. The current majority has 74 members of the Seimas.

The protection will also react to the secret vote of the Seimas

Director of the Management Security Service (IAS) Rymantas Mockevičius Delphi He explained when the new Seimas Speaker would begin to be under surveillance.

“After the election of the new president of Seimas, we will appoint a security team that belongs to him. And we will accompany the former head of Seimas home and that’s it. At some point, two of our teams will work for a certain number of hours, one with him. a new president and another with the old one, “said the VAT manager.

The protection of the new Speaker of the Seimas will begin to function as soon as the results of the secret vote are clarified.

“As soon as the Seimas elects and confirms that there is already a new Speaker of the Seimas, our men will present themselves immediately and start work,” said R. Mockevičius.

The first day will not be normal

Head of the Press Office of the Seimas Justė Radzevičiūtė – Laugalienė Delphi he said how unusual the first session of the Seimas of this period would be.

“The biggest difference will be that there will be no guests. Generally, all former Seimas ambassadors, ambassadors and other guests are also invited. This time there will be nothing during the oath of office on March 11, except members of the Seimas and those who must be present: President Gitanas Nausėda, who will congratulate the new members of the Seimas, Dainius Žalimas, President of the Constitutional Court The president of the Central Election Commission (CEC) and the invocation will be in charge of the Archbishop of Vilnius, Metropolitan Gintaras Grušas.

There will be so many guests, here is the biggest difference. ” Delphi said the head of the Seimas Press Office. Representatives of the media will not be invited to the swearing-in ceremony.

Members of the Seimas will sit further apart in the courtroom on March 11, although they will later meet again in the courtroom, where the necessary safety distances will no longer be guaranteed.

After taking the oath, new MPs will sign with separate pens and the Constitution will not be touched with their bare hands: the protective film of the Constitution will be changed after each oath.

J. Radzevičiūtė – Laugalienė stated that, although it was considered to divide into groups the new members of the Seimas taking the oath, this was rejected after consulting the representatives of the CC. This model was used to issue certificates to members of the future Seimas: 141 were divided into four groups.

“We have consulted with the president of the CC, the option of swearing in groups is not appropriate. All elected representatives of the nation must attend when the oaths are taken. Because otherwise the legality of the oath could be questioned ”, explained the representative of the Seimas Press Office.

He said the order is not particularly strict, as MPs must stand and listen to the oaths during a ceremony that lasts about 4 hours, but they will be able to leave the hall and rest for a short time.

Those who, for security reasons, will not be able to take the oath on Friday, will be able to do so at the next session of the Seimas, where they will be able to participate.

This can even happen to several MPs: the coronavirus was confirmed to Rimante Šalaševičiūtė on Thursday and to Evelina Dobrovolska last weekend. In self-isolation – Andrius Palionis, Justas Džiugelis.

What will be clear?

According to the Seimas Statute, the first Seimas session of the mandate will be opened by the oldest elected Seimas member, Antanas Vinkus, a 77-year-old member of the Seimas, who will preside over the session until the president is elected. The youngest member of the Seimas, Marius Matijošaitis (28 years old), will be entrusted with an equally important task: working in the first scrutiny group.

Sworn in 2020-2024 Seimas members will continue their work in the Seimas living room. The president of the Seimas, the vice-presidents of the Seimas will be elected and the composition of the Council of the Seimas and the Conference of Elders will be approved.

On the day of the session to the first session, the mandate of the members of the Seimas begins to be counted. From the beginning of this session, the term of the previously elected Seimas members will end.

Only a member of the Seimas chosen to be loyal to the Republic of Lithuania in the session of the Seimas will acquire all the rights of a representative of the Nation. A member of the Seimas must take the oath at the first session of the newly elected Seimas, but if he has a good reason, he may do so later.

A member of the Seimas takes an oath while standing in front of the President of the Constitutional Court, who takes the oath, reads the oath by placing his hand on the Constitution. After reading the oath, the Seimas member signs the nominal oath sheet. The text of the oath cannot be corrected or amended, but the deletion of the last sentence of the oath is allowed.

After the solemn part of the ceremony, elections for the President of the Seimas are organized in the session of the Seimas, after which their deputies are elected, the time is formed to form factions and the composition of the Board of the Seimas is approved. and the Conference of Elders.

At the beginning of the first session, the parliament must decide on the appointment of the prime minister by the president, form the Seimas committees and approve their presidents and deputies, consider the government program presented by the prime minister and draw up the program of fall session work.

In the new Seimas, TS-LKD has 50 seats, 32 LVŽS, 23 – LSDP, the Liberal Movement will have 13 seats in the Seimas and the Freedom Party will have 11 seats.

The Labor Party won 10 seats, the Polish electoral campaign in Lithuania – the Union of Christian Families (LLRA-KŠS) 3 seats, the Lithuanian Social Democratic Labor Party (LSDDP) – 3 seats. The Freedom and Justice Party and the Lithuanian Green Party will each have one seat in the Seimas.