VILNIUS - Lithuania's political scene erupted with intrigue in the run-up to the June 13 presidential and European Parliament elections, as party leaders pulled off a number of surprises to win over the electorate's support in the final weeks of campaigning.
With the Constitutional Court's May 25 ruling to ban Rolandas Paksas, former president and one of the most popular politicians, from running in the new presidential ballot, parties and candidates jockeyed for a position in what's looking more and more like a one-man race.
However, former President Valdas Adamkus, who is the clear front runner, received a blow from his own traditional base of support when the right-wing Homeland Union-Lithuanian Conservative Party withdrew its support for his candidacy the day after the high court's verdict.
Homeland Union, which had previously supported both Adamkus and former EU negotiator Petras Austrevicius, plumped for Austrevicius alone, arguing that it hoped to push two like-minded candidates into the second round of elections.
While Adamkus does not belong to any political party, it was broad support from center and right politicians that swept him to power in the 1998 presidential elections.
News of Homeland Union's official defection from the Adamkus camp came as a shock to political observers and raised question about the solidarity of the right-wing.
"In my personal opinion, this was an attempt by the Conservatives to dominate other right-wing parties," said Marius Lukosiunas, press secretary for the Adamkus campaign.
In spite of the Conservatives' official change of heart, Lukosiunas claimed that recent data had shown that over 80 percent of Homeland Union's rank and file still planned to vote for Adamkus.
Homeland Union's unexpected decision further subjected the party to criticism for stumping for the same candidate as the controversial Labor Party, which has been branded by mainstream politicians as a start-up populist party. In addition to nominating Austrevicus for the presidential post, Labor's leader, Viktor Uspaskich, has taken a high-profile role in Austrevicius' campaign strategy.
"I think this shows that Homeland Union is beginning to align itself with Uspaskich," Lukosiunas said.
Meanwhile, in a press conference held on May 26, leaders of Paksas' Liberal Democratic party took the contentious step of urging his supporters to spoil their voting ballots instead of voting for one of the five approved candidates.
"We urge everyone to actively participate in the elections, but cross out the names of all the candidates on the ballot and to write the name of Rolandas Paksas at the bottom, thus expressing their civil will," said Liberal Democrat MP Valentinas Mazuronis amid an atmosphere of sour dejection.
Following the comments, Central Electoral Committee Chairman Zenonas Vaigauskas said he would consider approaching prosecutors on the grounds that Mazurionis' suggestion could be criminal.
To round out the chaotic week, on June 1 a special parliamentary investigative committee issued a report accusing politicians involved in the 1999 privatization of the Mazeikiu Nafta refinery of dereliction of duty.
The move, initiated by the left-wing Social Democratic party, has been criticized by right-wing parties as an election-year smear tactic directed at Homeland Union and Adamkus, both of whom were in power at the time.
Alleging that then President Adamkus and the ruling coalition led by Homeland Union had "given up" Mazeikiu Nafta instead of working to secure the best possible arrangement for the state, the report specifically named several politicians running for European Parliament in addition to Adamkus.
Jonas Lionginas, who served as finance minister during the Mazeikiu Nafta negotiations with Williams International, the American petroleum company that procured the refinery, was accused in the report of not executing the duties of his post.
Lioniginas is listed as the third candidate on the list of the Liberal Democrat party, which is expected to make a strong showing in the elections.
"I don't think this will damage my candidacy," Lionginas told The Baltic Times. "I see the report as indicting the ruling coalition at the time. All politicians must take responsibility for their actions, and I have done so."
Prime Minister Algirdas Brazauskas, who leads the Social Democratic Party, stated that he approved of the ad hoc commission's conclusions on the privatization.
"This is similar to what we said in 1999 when signing the unfortunate agreement, which is the most disgraceful one in Lithuania's economic activity during the entire period of independence," Brazauskas said to Lithuanian national radio on June 1.
In his opinion, "the company worth about 2 billion litas [580 million euros] was handed over to strangers, and Lithuania received not a single centas."
