Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda convincingly takes the first place in the first round of the elections held yesterday, but he goes to a run-off in which will face Prime Minister Ingrida Shimonite, reported France Press, quoted by BTA, referring to a representative of the Central Election Commission.
Nauseda, 59, who was the front-runner in opinion polls, had 46 percent of the vote with almost all ballots counted. Shimonite, 49 years old, is far behind in second place with 16 percent.
However, since Nauseda did not pass the 50 percent threshold, there will be a runoff on May 26 between the two candidates with the highest scores in the first round.
According to experts, Nauseda, a former banker, will almost certainly be re-elected.
Otherwise, there are no foreign policy differences between the two contenders: each of them is firmly in favor of continuing aid to Ukraine against the background of the Russian threat to Lithuania itself, notes AFP.
According to the constitution, the president is entitled to no more than two consecutive five-year terms.