Freedom Party (Lithuania)
Lithuanian political party
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Freedom Party[5][6] (Lithuanian: Laisvės partija) is a political party in Lithuania placed in the centre[2][3][7] on the political spectrum, founded on 1 June 2019 by former Liberal Movement member Aušrinė Armonaitė. She was leader from 2019 until 2024. Vytautas Mitalas has been the party's leader since 11 March 2026.
Romualdas Bakutis
Laura Bliujienė
Daniel Ilkevič
Rasa Račienė
Freedom Party Laisvės partija | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | LP |
| Chairperson | Vytautas Mitalas |
| Vice Chairpeople | Morgana Danielė Romualdas Bakutis Laura Bliujienė Daniel Ilkevič Rasa Račienė |
| Founders | Aušrinė Armonaitė, Remigijus Šimašius and others |
| Founded | 1 June 2019 |
| Split from | Liberal Movement |
| Membership (2022) | 3,313 |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Centre[A] |
| European affiliation | Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe |
| European Parliament group | Renew Europe |
| Colours | Pink and yellow |
| Seimas | 0 / 141 (0%) |
| European Parliament | 1 / 11 (9%) |
| Municipal councils | 12 / 1,473 |
| Mayors | 0 / 60 |
| Website | |
| laisvespartija.lt | |
^ A: It has also been described as a centre-left[3] and as a centre-right party.[4] | |
History
The party has its roots in Vilnius mayor Remigijus Šimašius's list "For Vilnius, which we are proud of!", which won the Lithuanian capital's council and mayoral election. In November 2018, Aušrinė Armonaitė announced intentions to found a new party.[8]
By the summer and autumn of 2019, the party established its branches in cities and their surrounding municipalities.[9]
The party was accepted as a full member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe in October 2019.[10] The party saw success in 2020 Lithuanian parliamentary election and obtained 11 seats. After this, the party formed a coalition with the Homeland Union and Liberal Movement and delegated three ministers - Armonaitė, Ewelina Dobrowolska and Marius Skuodis - to the Šimonytė Cabinet.
On 11 December 2021, the Freedom Party officially became a full member of the ALDE Party.[11]
Platform
The Freedom Party has been described as liberal,[1][2] neoliberal,[12] social liberal,[13] and libertarian.[14]
The party supports LGBT rights,[18] the legalisation of same-sex unions in Lithuania,[14] and has a goal to remove restrictions on the personal use of cannabis in Lithuania.[14]
In regards to economics, the party is extremely economically liberal and advocates for policies such as cutting taxes and loosening the labour code.[19]
The party supports European integration and recognizing the statehood of Taiwan (Republic of China) as a country separate from the People's Republic of China, and is strongly opposed to Russian aggression in Ukraine.[20] It supports the European Green Deal.[21]
Within the Šimonytė Cabinet, it criticized its coalition partners, namely the Homeland Union and the Liberal Movement, for insufficient adherence to progressivism, as well as their "left-wing tax policy".[22]
Election results
Seimas
| Election | Leader | Votes[a] | % | Seats | +/– | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Aušrinė Armonaitė | 107,057 | 9.45 (#5) | 11 / 141 |
New | Coalition |
| 2024 | 55,845 | 4.62 (#7) | 0 / 141 |
 11 |
Extra-parliamentary |
- Proportional representation votes.
European Parliament
| Election | List leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | EP Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Dainius Žalimas | 54,797 | 8.10 (#4) | 1 / 11 |
 1 |
RE |
Seimas members (2020–2024)
| Parliamentarian | Previous mandate | Current mandate from | Constituency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artūras Žukauskas | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
| Aušrinė Armonaitė | 2016 | 2020 | Lithuanians abroad |
| Ewelina Dobrowolska | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
| Ieva Pakarklytė | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
| Kasparas Adomaitis | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
| Marius Matijošaitis | - | 2020 | Savanoriai |
| Monika Ošmianskienė | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
| Morgana Danielė | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
| Tomas Vytautas Raskevičius | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
| Vytautas Mitalas | - | 2020 | Nationwide |
