Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda re-elected

Lithuania's President Gitanas Nauseda won re-election on Sunday, May 26, in a vote marked by defense concerns over neighboring Russia, official results showed. The count published by the electoral commission showed that Nauseda won 74.6% of votes with 90% of ballots counted after polls closed in the second-round vote.

Voters "have handed me a great mandate of trust and I am well aware that I will have to cherish this," Nauseda, 60, told journalists in Vilnius. "Now that I have five years of experience, I believe that I will certainly be able to use this jewel properly, first of all to achieve the goals of welfare for all the people of Lithuania," he said.

His opponent, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, conceded defeat in comments to reporters and congratulated Nauseda.