VILNIUS - Arturas Paulauskas, leader of the ruling Social Liberals and speaker of Parliament, became one of the first major political figures not to rule out a coalition with the populist Labor Party, which is expected to come out on top at the Oct. 10 parliamentary elections.
Paulauskas, in an interview to the Lietuvos Rytas daily published on Oct. 5, said he hadn't noticed any significant differences in the election campaigns of the so-called populist and classic parties and that a union between the Labor Party and the current ruling coalition of the Social Democrats and the Social Liberals was one of the most realistic options for forming a ruling majority in the country's new Parliament.
Paulauskas said that, considering the fondness of many parliamentarians to change party membership during the four-year parliamentary tenure, it would be difficult to form a strong ruling coalition.
"Therefore, I cannot rule out the option of a coalition with the Labor Party," said Paulauskas, who took over as interim president after Rolandas Paksas was impeached from the president's office.
He forecast that the current ruling coalition would win 40 - 50 mandates in the new 140-seat Parliament. "I believe that politicians in our coalition who win the mandates will become the axis everything rotates around," he said.
In Paulauskas' words, the choice of partners would depend on practical matters - longevity and the ability to work with those who will be appointed to ministerial posts.
"Let's say we want to form a coalition against the Labor Party to keep it from power. Who could be in this coalition? How many political forces and votes will it have? What requirements would these forces make?" he asked. "Finally, how can these parties be members of the ruling coalition - as full partners, or just by offering their support in key moments when picking a prime minister or voting for the government's program and the budget?"
For the government to be stable it cannot be supported by a Parliament that has a majority of just one or two votes, he explained. Paulauskas also said that the ongoing election campaign resembles a turmoil designed for the voters' eyes and ears, nothing more.
