On 7 December 2023, Nausėda announced his decision to run for re-election in the2024 Lithuanian presidential election[3] and was re-elected for a second term on 26 May 2024.
Nausėda was born on 19 May 1964 in the port cityKlaipėda on the Baltic coast. He started his secondary studies at the Klaipėda 5th Secondary School and also attended the Klaipėda Music School where he sang in the boys' choir "Gintarėlis".
After secondary school he moved toVilnius where he studied Industrial Economics from 1982 to 1987 atVilnius University, he continued his studies as a post-graduate student of Economics from 1987 until 1989.[4] While at university Nausėda registered to join theCommunist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) in 1988 at the age of 24.[5] From 1987 to 2004 he hosted occasional economics lecturers at the University.
From 1990 to 1992 he did a practice at theUniversity of Mannheim in Germany under theDAAD scholarship.He defended his PhD thesis "Income Policy Under Inflation and Stagflation" in 1993.[6] Upon returning to Lithuania, he worked for the Lithuanian Competition Council as Head of the Financial Markets Department until 1994. Since 2009 he has been anassociate professor atVilnius University Business School.[1][7]
Having completed his studies, from 1992 to 1993 he worked for the Research Institute for Economics and Privatization.From 1993 to 1994 he worked for the LithuanianCompetition Council as a head of the Financial Markets Department.From 1994 to 2000 he worked at theBank of Lithuania, initially in the department regulating the commercial banks and later as a director of the Monetary Policy Department.From 2000 to 2008 he was a chief economist and adviser to the chairman of AB Vilniaus Bankas.From 2008 to 2018 he was the financial analyst as well as chief adviser and later the chief economist for theSEB bankas president.[1]
On 17 September 2018, Nausėda announced his candidacy for the2019 Lithuanian presidential election.[8] He finished just 2,000 votes behind former Finance MinisterIngrida Šimonytė in the first round, and defeated her in the runoff with 66 percent of the vote.
He was officially inaugurated on 12 July.[9] Nausėda presented acting Prime MinisterSaulius Skvernelis's candidacy to continue his duties on 18 July.[10] By the time he had spent a month in office, Nausėda was considered to be the most trusted politician in Lithuania according to polls conducted by theLithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT).[11]
In April 2020, President Nausėda and Belarusian PresidentAlexander Lukashenko had their nations' first presidential tête-à-tête in 10 years.[12] Following the Lukashenko government's crackdown on protesters after the disputed2020 Belarusian presidential elections (which were widely regarded as unfree and unfair)[13] and the resultingprotests, Belarusian opposition candidateSvetlana Tikhanovskaya fled to Lithuania.[14] Nausėda's leadership during the crisis has been noted for being one that augmented Lithuania's role among European Union nations.[15] On 12 August, he ordered that Lithuania open its borders to all Belarusians for humanitarian purposes.[16] That day, he also presented a plan on the settlement of the crisis, being supported byLatvia and Poland, which consisted of three points that included a call for the creation of a national council from theBelarusian Government and civilian society. In an interview withSky News on 13 August, he declared Lukashenko as "no longer the legitimate leader".[17]
On 23 May 2021, in the immediate aftermath of the hijacking ofRyanair flight 4578, where two journalists outspoken against the Lukashenko regime in Belarus were arrested, Nausėda called for EU recognition of Belarusian airspace as "unsafe for civilian aviation" and the immediate release of the arrested journalistRoman Protasevich. By the evening of 23 May Nausėda has secured the support of both the leaders ofLatvia andEstonia in recognising Belarusian airspace as unsafe to enter.
Nausėda has made multiple efforts to engage in better relations withPoland, being seen as a personal ally of the Polish leadership.[20] On 16 July, four days after his inauguration, he visitedWarsaw to meet with PresidentAndrzej Duda in his first foreign visit as president.[21] During the visit, there were calls for him to establish a more personal relationship with the country.[22] He also rejected any attempt by European Union leaders to sanction Poland for its actions in relation to theSupreme Court of Poland and the rest of the country'sjudiciary.[23] On 22 November, Nausėda and Duda, as well as theFirst Lady of PolandAgata Kornhauser-Duda participated in thestate funeral of commanders and participants in the1863–1864 uprising against Tsarist rule inVilnius.[24] During his visit to Vilnius, Duda highlighted the Central European nations' unity importance for their independence.[25] In January 2020, Nausėda joined Duda in pulling out of the 5thWorld Holocaust Forum, who criticized the event for giving the speaking slot to Russian president Putin, who has himself criticized Poland's WWII history by engaging in ahistorical revisionist campaign.[26]
During a meeting inBerlin with German ChancellorAngela Merkel in August 2019, Nausėda urged her to maintain sanctions against Russia.[27] In an interview with LRT on 14 August, he reiterated past positions that a potential meeting with Russian PresidentVladimir Putin would be "pointless" due to the fact that Lithuania sees "the true danger" and "risks" of being on the border with Russia.[28]
Nausėda in Kyiv, Ukraine on 13 April 2022Nausėda with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, Ukraine, 28 July 2022
In November 2019, he referred to the Steinmeier formula suggested by Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelensky as a solution to theRusso-Ukrainian War as being "more profitable for Russia than Ukraine".[31]
On 23 February 2022, a day before the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, President Nausėda together with his Polish counterpartAndrzej Duda visited Zelensky in Kyiv to express solidarity and support.[32] During the visit, Nausėda said: "In the face of Russian aggression, Ukraine will not be left alone... We will support Ukraine with all possible means."[32] Following the invasion, Nausėda called for military, economic and humanitarian aid for Ukraine.[29]
In April 2024, the Lithuanian government considered repatriating Ukrainian men of military age living in Lithuania to Ukraine to bedrafted into the Ukrainian army.[33] Nausėda voiced support for the repatriation of military-age Ukrainian men to Ukraine.[34]
In January 2022, Nausėda criticized the government's creation of a de facto embassy ofTaiwan with the inclusion of "Taiwanese" in the name, an act interpreted by thePeople's Republic of China as a breach of theOne-China policy and resulted in a degradation in political and economic relationships.[35] The President clarified that while he does not object to the opening of the embassy, he was not consulted on the naming decision.[36]
After theIranian attack on Israel in April 2024, Nausėda criticized the "unacceptable double standards" of European countries and the United States regardingmilitary aid to Ukraine andIsrael, saying that "if we are principled and really stand for democratic values, we should support both [countries], and not calculate – we give this much to one and that much to the other."[37] On 21 November 2024, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issuedarrest warrants for two senior Israeli officials,Benjamin Netanyahu, thePrime Minister of Israel, andYoav Gallant, the formerMinister of Defense of Israel, The Foreign Ministry confirmed that the arrest warrant would be executed.[38]
Relations with the Šimonytė Government and centre-right ruling coalition
During the 2020 parliamentary electionsIngrida Šimonytė, former opponent of Nausėda in the2019 presidential election, was elected to the position of prime minister.[39] He publicly broke with the government's decision to create a de facto embassy of Taiwan bearing the country's name in the title.[36]
During February 2021 it was alleged that there were talks in new ruling coalition about impeaching the president, possible due to alleged breaching of power in two different situations: alleged interference in appointing military intelligence commanders (which is the duty of Minister of Defence) and participation in European Council (which is, according to some conservatives, the prerogative of the Prime Minister).[40][41][42] However, this was denied by politicians of the ruling party.[43]
Relations with the Paluckas Government and centre-left ruling coalition
After the first round of the2024 parliamentary election, which saw favorable results for theLithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP), Nausėda stated that he expected relations with a future centre-left government to be more productive than those with the outgoing centre-right government.[44] He opined that he did not foresee major changes to the country's foreign policy, but did expect domestic policies to change for the better.[44]
After the second round, LSDP chairVilija Blinkevičiūtė unexpectedly declined the position of prime minister, leading to criticism and the nomination ofGintautas Paluckas in her place. Nausėda urged the Social Democrats to focus on forming a coalition and writing a political programme.[45] He agreed with presumptive prime minister Gintautas Paluckas's declared intention to restore diplomatic ties with China.[46] However, Nausėda criticized the Social Democrats' decision to invite the nationalist partyDawn of Nemunas into the ruling coalition.[47] The inclusion of Dawn of Nemunas in the government attracted international criticism due to antisemitic remarks made by the party's founder,Remigijus Žemaitaitis.[48]
In July 2025, following a series of investigative reports on Paluckas's business dealings and alleged corruption, Nausėda initially reaffirmed his trust in the prime minister.[49] However, on 24 July, Nausėda demanded that Paluckas either respond to concerns of corruption or reconsider his PM position.[50] Paluckas resigned on 31 July.[51]
Countries visited by Nausėda as of 20 January 2020.
As President, Nausėda frequently heads Lithuanian diplomatic, academic and business delegations around the world to promote, advocate and advance Lithuanian interests internationally. This includes defending the nation's interests regionally, with the ongoingRussian invasion of Ukraine and internationally to promote Lithuanian business and industry and create ties with other states. Since 2019, Nausėda has made 79 international trips, including 13 toBelgium for meetings of the European Union, 8 toPoland, 6 to Germany and 4 to the United States for sessions of theUnited Nations General Assembly. His most recent visit was to Australia, where he spent a day in bothMelbourne andCanberra.
Nausėda has welcomed many foreign leaders and dignitaries to Lithuania since taking office, including Latvian PresidentEgils Levits, Polish PresidentAndrzej Duda, Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelensky and Canadian Governor-GeneralJulie Payette.
During the 2019 presidential campaign, Nausėda described himself as acompassionate conservative.[59] In spite of this, his political positions are considered by some political scientists as hard to define. According toLauras Bielinis, "[Nausėda's] political views are heavily permeated with economic arguments, it is difficult to find ideology there. His acquired profession and activities in the bank still remain an essential factor in his decisions in the field of politics".[59] In 2024, Nausėda claimed that his vision "partially or, I would say to a large extent, coincides with thesocial democratic point of view".[60] His 2024 bid for re-election was endorsed by theLithuanian Social Democratic Party and theLithuanian Regions Party.[61][62]
Nausėda supports theŠimonytė Cabinet's proposal ofsame-sex partnerships, as long as the reform does not violate the Constitution. In 2021, he refused to sign a letter by EU leaders condemning theHungarian anti-LGBT law.[66] This statement came after his endorsement of the Great Family Defense March, a protest held inVilnius which opposed the partnership law proposal, describing it as "genderist propaganda". Nausėda made a pre-recorded speech in the event, in which he affirmed that he believes marriage should be between a man and a woman.[67]
Nausėda's father, Antanas Nausėda (1929–2022), was an engineer. His mother, Stasė Nausėdienė (1931–2014), was a physics and mathematics teacher from the village of Lazdininkai. His sister, Vilija (born 1959), is an economist. In 1990, he married Diana Nausėdienė. They have two daughters.[68] In addition to his nativeLithuanian, Gitanas Nausėda speaks German, English and Russian.[69] Since 1997, he has been collecting antique books.[70]
Environmentalists have criticized Gitanas Nausėda for building a modern private house in Pavilniai Regional Park, near the Pūčkoriai exposure—a unique geological object declared to be anature monument in 1974. Nausėda, who was then an advisor forSEB bankas, replied that he had a legal permit for its construction. The Directorate of the Pavilniai Regional Park tried to fight back against the permit, but to no avail. Nausėda responded "It's a shame that people till this day can't admit being wrong and that the court had acknowledged this as well. That time I showed good will and did not demand the court to ask money from them for a lawsuit that lasted for 2–3 years. But it seems people don't get that." According to the director of the Directorate of the Pavilniai Regional Park Vida Petiukonienė, even though experts had confirmed that the permit to construct a modern house in the park is not in accordance with the law, the court had ordered them to reconcile the project. Petiukonienė commented "This is the reality of life, this is how things work in this world, we can only feel sorry. The situation we are in is one of those ridiculous instances, a mockery of the country, laws, and people who go to work in order to commit to these laws. In other words, us."[71]
The President was criticised for deciding to visit his daughter, studying in South Korea, during theofficial state visit to Japan trip in 2019. Nausėda apologized for the incident during his announcement ofseeking reelection in 2023 and called it fundamentally wrong.[72]
In 2023, investigative journalists Dovydas Pancerovas and Birutė Davidonytė released a book titledThe Whistleblower and the President (Lithuanian:Pranešėjas ir Prezidentas), which revealed information about unreported funding for Nausėda's presidential campaign, as well as Nausėda's relationship with business groups.[73] After the publication of the book, MPs of theLithuanian Farmers and Greens Union claimed that an alleged conspiracy group called "theStatesmen" attempted to discredit the incumbent president and proposed an investigation into "statesmen" activity.[74]
Nausėda's team participated in the revival of the Statesmen conspiracy theory. In January 2024, Gitanas Nausėda's chief advisor Frederikas Jansonas claimed that appointments to vacant ambassador positions are delayed due to "statesmen" sabotage, and alleged that the conspiracy group is allied with theŠimonytė Cabinet. He identified members of the government, such asŽygimantas Pavilionis, as individuals listed in the 2008 "List of the Statesmen".[75]Albinas Januška dismissed the allegations.[76]
In 2023, controversy arose when it was revealed that Nausėda was a former member of theCommunist Party of the Soviet Union. According to documents, Nausėda, who was identified with a Russified form of his name, Gitanas Antanovich Nauseda, joined the CPSU on 20 May 1988, and was given a party ticket on 27 June.[5] The news about his membership was first broken out by Dovydas Pancerovas, a journalist working for the Laisvės TV channel, who found the information in the Lithuanian State Historical Archives. Controversy intensified as it was also revealed that Nausėda did not disclose this information when filing for the presidency.[77][78]
^"УКАЗ ПРЕЗИДЕНТА УКРАЇНИ №395/2021".Офіційне інтернет-представництво Президента України (in Ukrainian).Archived from the original on 30 September 2022. Retrieved24 August 2021.
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