"Elections to the Seimas and a referendum on the new nuclear power plant took place yesterday. According to the data we now have, the referendum stands with voter turnout of 52 percent. The referendum provision was rejected," Vaigauskas said at a news conference to present the preliminary results.
He also emphasized that the commission has received data from 94 percent of polling stations, adding that preliminary results from all stations should come in on Monday evening.
According to preliminary data, the Labour Party emerge victorious with over 20 percent of the vote in multi-mandate ballot (which translates into 17 seats out of 70 distributed on proportional representation basis), followed by the Social Democrats with more than 18 percent (16 seats) and the Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats with nearly 15 percent (12 seats). The Liberal Movement secured more than 8 percent of the vote (7 seats), the Path of Courage party got nearly 8 percent (7 seats), the Order and Justice party and the Electoral Action of Poles finished with over 7 percent and nearly 6 percent, respectively (accordingly, 6 and 5 seats).
In the advisory referendum, about 34 percent of the vote went in favour of constructing a new nuclear utility, while 63 percent were against.
Run-off ballot
Three politicians, including Social Democratic leader Algirdas Butkevičius, Labour Party's Virginija Baltraitienė, and Leonard Talmont of the Electoral Action of Poles, have already secured their single-mandate seats in the Seimas during the first round of voting.
The run-off ballot will take place in 68 (out of 71) constituencies and will include 36 Labour Party candidates, 35 conservatives, 27 social democrats, nine members of the Path of Courage party, 8 members of the Order and Justice Party, six members from the Liberal Movement and the Electoral Action of Poles each, four independent candidates, three representatives of the Lithuanian Peasant and Green Union, and two candidates from the Liberal and Centre Union.
After the first round, the conservatives are leading in 23 constituencies, followed by the social democrats (18), the Labour Party (13), the Order and Justice (5), the Liberal Movement (4), the Electoral Action of Poles (4), the Lithuanian Peasant and Greens Union (2), and two independent candidates.
