Lithuania likely to hold local elections on March 1, 2015

The Lithuanian parliament is likely to set the date of the country’s first ever direct mayoral elections and of regular local council elections for March 1, 2015, the daily Lietuvos Žinios reported on Saturday.

The elections will cost the state 17 million litas (EUR 5 mln), it wrote.

The country’s Central Electoral Commission proposed to hold the elections on February 22, 2015. However, it is thought at the Seimas (parliament) that the polls should be held a week later.

Seimas Speaker Loreta Graužiniene is meeting with Zenonas Vaigauskas, chairman of the commission, next Monday to discuss the date.

Under the law, the parliament is to set the election date no later than 5 months before the term of office of the incumbent local councillors expires.