The October 2024 parliamentary elections in Lithuania marked a shift in the country’s political landscape. The Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP), under the leadership of Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, secured 52 out of 141 seats in the Seimas, the parliament, ending the four-year tenure of the center-right government led by Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė and her Homeland Union (TS-LKD), which managed to obtain only 28 seats.[1]

While the rise of the Social Democrats and the decline of the Homeland Union was expected, less so was the success of Nemunas Dawn, a newly established populist party led by a politician known for his openly antisemitic statements, Remigijus Žemaitaitis. Nemunas Dawn, which  Žemaitaitis formed in 2023, secured 20 seats and finished third in the elections. An even bigger shock was the decision by the Social Democrats to form a coalition with Žemaitaitis and his party despite pre-election statements it would not do so.

A lawyer by training, Žemaitaitis first entered the Seimas in 2009 as a member of the Order and Justice party, a conservative right-wing party championing anti-establishment views, winning his local constituency of Šilalė–Šilutė.[2] He served as its chairman from 2016 to 2020 when Order and Justice merged with two other parties to form the Freedom and Justice party, a center-right conservative party with liberal economic positions.

Known for his inflammatory rhetoric and populist tactics throughout his political career, Žemaitaitis gained notoriety in 2023 for a series of antisemitic social media posts accusing Jews of historical crimes against Lithuanians, distorting the history of the Holocaust, and making antisemitic comments about Israel.

The resulting scandal led to his suspension from the Freedom and Justice party and an April 2024 ruling by Lithuania’s Constitutional Court that he had violated his parliamentary oath and Lithuania’s Constitution by inciting hatred. This ruling led to his resignation from the Seimas to avoid impeachment.

In doing so, Žemaitaitis ensured his ability to remain a candidate in Lithuania’s May 2024 presidential election and return to the Lithuanian parliament in October 2024 as a leader of a radical new force. Indeed, despite his antisemitic remarks and controversies surrounding his historical revisionism, he maintained a strong support base among certain nationalist and far-right voter segments, as well as rural voters. He did so by portraying himself as a defender of “Lithuanian sovereignty” and a victim of elites trying to silence him from telling the truth about Jews, the Holocaust in Lithuania, and Israel.

Žemaitaitis has had a troubled relation to facts and decency when Jews or Israel are concerned. In early May 2023, reports emerged that Israeli authorities, carrying out a court order, demolished a European Union (EU)-funded Palestinian school near Bethlehem. The Israeli court found that the school had been constructed illegally in 2017 and that the structure was unsafe and in danger of collapsing.[3]

The demolition was condemned by the EU and the Palestinian Authority (PA).[4] Žemaitaitis added his voice to the criticism of Israel’s destruction of the school in two Facebook posts commenting on the incident, where he cited a well-known Lithuanian folk song with deep-seated antisemitic lyrics.

In his first post, he wrote, “Apparently, there are animals in this world besides Putin, Israel […] After such events, no wonder there appear sayings like this: ‘A Jew was climbing the ladder and accidentally fell off; take a stick, kids, and kill that little Jew.’ What else must happen for Israel to realize that such provocations and such actions only stir more anger and hatred against Jews and their people.”

In a second post made shortly thereafter, Žemaitaitis repeated the antisemitic children’s rhyme urging “Israeli Jews” to apologize to the Palestinians and the EU for “your nasty little actions in a foreign country.”[5] Several days later, he continued to make a public spectacle, apologizing as a “European, a member of the Seimas” to the Palestinian people for the Israeli actions; his post received over one thousand likes.[6]

Žemaitaitis’s inflammatory posts provoked a swift backlash and led to calls for disciplinary action against him. The embassies of Israel, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States and the World Jewish Congress condemned the statements and called on Žemaitaitis to publicly apologize.

Faina Kukliansky, chairwoman of the Lithuanian Jewish Community (LJC), noted that Žemaitaitis’s statements were crafted not for Jews but for a Lithuanian audience, exploiting nationalist sentiments and historical grievances to promote his political agenda.[7] Žemaitaitis’s party, Freedom and Justice, expelled him, although he dismissed this as an illegal act and accused his former colleagues of supporting “a terrorist state – Israel.”[8] The Seimas’s Ethics and Procedures Commission launched an investigation into his conduct, and the Vilnius District Prosecutor’s Office initiated a pre-trial investigation into his possible incitement of ethnic discord.[9]

Žemaitaitis remained defiant, refusing to apologize for his remarks and instead portraying himself as a victim of political persecution and arguing that he was exercising free speech. He doubled down on his use of the antisemitic rhyme, saying he did so intentionally to argue that the state of Israel was causing antisemitism to rise around the world through its policies. He further warned that any impeachment efforts against him would be challenged in the European Court of Human Rights.[10]

A month later, in June 2023, Žemaitaitis expanded his antisemitic rhetoric to include historical revisionism in another series of inflammatory Facebook posts that distorted the Holocaust. He suggested Lithuanians suffered more than Jews in the Second World War and blamed Jews for crimes against Lithuanians. Targeting then-Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė while she visited Israel, Žemaitaitis condemned her visit and falsely claimed that Lithuanian Jews and Russians committed the June 1944 massacre in Pirčiupiai, which was actually perpetrated by a Nazi SS unit.[11] Demanding the government care more about Lithuanians allegedly murdered by Jews between 1941 and 1944, he continued,

How much longer will our politicians kneel down to the Jews who killed our people and contributed to the oppression and torture of Lithuanians and the destruction of our country? There was a Holocaust of the Jews, but there was an even larger Holocaust of the Lithuanians in Lithuania! So, if our joker politicians apologize to the Jews in Israel, when will the Jews apologize to us?[12]

Over the following days, including the June 14 Day of Mourning and Hope, which commemorates Soviet deportations of Lithuanians to Siberia, Žemaitaitis continued his tirade in several other posts. Addressing the deportations, Žemaitaitis stated: “We, the Lithuanian people, must never forget the Jews and the Russians who very actively contributed to the destruction of our nation!”[13] He further argued that the “descendants of those NKVD and KGB,” meaning Jews, rule over Lithuanians today and that June 14 should be commemorated as the national day of the “Lithuanian Holocaust.”[14]

In another post, he published a list of Jewish individuals who he falsely accused of orchestrating Soviet deportations of Lithuanians in 1941, writing, “Even after 80 years have passed, one ‘subspecies’ group of Jews is still not able to admit that in this tragedy of Lithuania their representatives played a very important role.”[15]

Žemaitaitis’s claims equating Soviet-era deportations and repressions with the Holocaust, framing Lithuanians as the true victims of genocide, and minimizing Jewish suffering and historical evidence of Lithuanian complicity in Holocaust crimes were not original or uncommon. They echo known revisionist narratives that seek to relativize the Holocaust by emphasizing the suffering of non-Jewish populations under Soviet rule and the antisemitic depiction of Jews as collaborators with the Soviet regime.

As other countries in Europe, Lithuania confronts a complicated past. The nation was a victim of injustice but also the perpetrator of injustice and was occupied by the Germans and the Soviets. The contested manner in which Lithuanians engage with their complicated past is captured by, among other things, the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights, which this author visited in the summer of 2023.

Located in the former KGB building in Vilnius, between 1940 and 1941, it was the prison of the NKVD/NKGB before serving as the headquarters of the Gestapo, Sicherheitsdienst (SD, SS intelligence), and the SD’s Sonderkommando (special squad, YB) of local Lithuanian volunteers who participated in the slaughter of Lithuania’s Jews from 1941-1944. It was then reoccupied by the KGB in 1944. However, until 2011, there was not a single exhibit in the museum about the Holocaust or about Lithuanian complicity in Nazi crimes. The “genocide” the museum dubiously referred to was that of non-Jewish Lithuanians murdered by the Soviets. Moreover, some Lithuanians who helped the Nazis perpetrate the Holocaust, that is, in murdering their fellow Lithuanians, were lauded and praised for resisting the Soviets.[16]

Žemaitaitis’s remarks reflect the difficulty Lithuania has had in confronting its complicated past. Žemaitaitis claimed he was merely exposing historical truths about Jewish involvement in Soviet crimes in an attempt to justify himself. Yet, as several critics and historians noted, Žemaitaitis distorts historical facts and essentially is willing to say anything that will make him popular among the disaffected, the poorly educated about the crimes of the Holocaust and those who are, simply put, antisemites.[17]

The Lithuanian Jewish Community expressed its deep concern and sadness over Žemaitaitis’s rhetoric, emphasizing that such statements had not appeared in mainstream Lithuanian discourse for years.[18] That Žemaitaitis’s diatribe coincided with Lithuania’s commemoration of the liquidation of the Vilnius ghetto (June 1943, which SS Chief Heinrich Himmler ordered) made the timing of his statements even more painful for Lithuania’s Jewish community.

The government response to Žemaitaitis’s statements during 2023 was mixed. Leading figures, including then-Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė and then-Speaker of Parliament Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen, condemned his remarks, and Speaker Čmilytė-Nielsen suggested Žemaitaitis should be impeached and removed from parliament.

The ruling coalition demanded an apology for his antisemitic remarks before the NATO summit in Vilnius in July, but opposition parties refused to support the motion. Some opposition parties also refused to support efforts to impeach and remove him from parliament, signaling a reluctance to take a firm stance against antisemitism.[19]

For his part, Žemaitaitis remained defiant, asking what exactly he should apologize for. He threatened that if impeachment proceedings were started against him, he would appeal to the European Court of Human Rights, local courts, and society.[20]

Lithuanian Prosecutor General Nida Grunskienė stated that the legal proceedings against Žemaitaitis would depend on expert assessments of whether his statements constituted incitement to hatred. Given Lithuania’s legal framework, which includes laws against hate speech and ethnic incitement, a possibility existed that he could face criminal charges.[21]

While the international condemnation of Žemaitaitis’s remarks, coupled with domestic calls for accountability, suggested broad opposition to such rhetoric, the political resistance to Žemaitaitis’s removal from parliament raised questions about the extent to which there was the will to hold him accountable for his antisemitic statements.

In September 2023, the Lithuanian Parliament established a commission to investigate Žemaitaitis’s antisemitic statements on Facebook and determine whether he should be impeached. Initially, opposition parties viewed the commission as a politically motivated effort by the ruling conservative party to remove an opposition MP.

Following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, Žemaitaitis justified the war crimes committed by the Islamist terrorists, stating, “There are two ends to the stick; now the Israeli barbarians must suffer for murdering Palestinians.” These words encouraged a stronger push for his impeachment. As a result, 88 members of parliament voted in favor of continuing proceedings against him, while only two opposed and two abstained.[22]

Despite the establishment of a special impeachment commission to review the case, Žemaitaitis repeatedly failed to appear at meetings. On one occasion, Commission Chairman Arūnas Valinskas stated: “We won’t undertake additional measures. We will simply send an access link to all meetings we hold in the future and will provide the member of parliament the chance to connect and explain his position.” Valinskas further noted that Žemaitaitis’s refusal to present his own explanations could be perceived as a deliberate attempt to discredit the commission’s work, possibly exploiting loopholes in parliamentary statutes.[23]

While the commission continued its work, Žemaitaitis behaved as though he had done nothing wrong. No longer a member of the Freedom and Justice party, in January 2024, Žemaitaitis registered Nemunas Dawn as a party and announced his candidacy for the May 2024 presidential elections.[24]

His announced presidential bid coincided with Lithuanian Prosecutor General Nida Grunskienė’s request for parliament to strip Žemaitaitis of his parliamentary immunity, citing his repeated posting of content on Facebook in May and June 2023 that allegedly mocked, belittled, and incited hatred against Jewish people. Grunskienė informed parliament that “the information collected in the pre-trial investigation lends credence that member of parliament Žemaitaitis […] posted texts on his social media pages which might have mocked, belittled, and encouraged hate publicly against the group of people of Jewish ethnicity.”[25]

While Žemaitaitis admitted to posting the comments during an interview with prosecutors, he insisted that he was merely expressing his opinion and denied engaging in hate speech. The following month, in February 2024, the Lithuanian parliament approved the removal of Žemaitaitis parliamentary immunity in response to allegations of antisemitic statements, opening the door to criminal prosecution.

As the criminal investigation into his antisemitic social media posts continued, efforts to remove Žemaitaitis from parliament received a boost in April 2024 from the Lithuanian Constitutional Court, which ruled that Žemaitaitis’s statements violated his parliamentary oath and the Constitution. The court found that his social media posts contained “degrading descriptions of Jewish people and Holocaust denial,” which amounted to a “gross violation” of the country’s fundamental law.

The court elaborated that his statements “[contained], among other things, degrading descriptions of people belonging to an ethnically distinct group and [quoted] a counting-out rhyme [...] depicting violence against Jewish people, mocking them.” Furthermore, the ruling emphasized that Žemaitaitis’s statements incited intolerance between ethnic minorities and demonstrated hatred toward an ethnically distinct group.[26]

On these grounds, the Lithuanian parliament had legal grounds to call a vote to impeach and remove Žemaitaitis. Such a vote never occurred after Žemaitaitis, who called the ruling “unjust,” chose to resign from parliament rather than face an impeachment vote. In avoiding impeachment, Žemaitaitis ensured his ability to run in the upcoming presidential election and parliamentary elections.[27] He found a loophole.

Elected through a two-round system, a candidate in the presidential race must secure an absolute majority in the first round to win; otherwise, a runoff between the top two candidates is necessary. In the 2024 election, incumbent President Gitanas Nausėda, an independent supported by the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania and the Lithuanian Regions Party, sought re-election against Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė of the Homeland Union.

No candidate achieved an absolute majority in the first round, necessitating a runoff. President Nauseda won 44%, while Šimonytė took second place with 20% of the vote and Žemaitaitis came in fourth with 9.28% of the vote (more than 132,000 total votes).[28]

At one point, before election results from cities had been counted, Žemaitaitis polled in second place, an achievement that surprised even him. Though ultimately falling to fourth place, winning over 9% of the vote despite his known antisemitic statements suggested such views are applauded or at least are considered legitimate by a segment of the electorate.

Žemaitaitis ultimately gave his support to the incumbent Nausėda in the second round, who secured a decisive victory with 75.29% of the vote, the largest margin in Lithuania’s presidential election history since its independence in 1990.

Following his failed presidential bid, Žemaitaitis turned his attention to parliamentary elections slated for October 2024. As part of his parliamentary campaign, he portrayed himself as a victim of “cancel culture,” claiming he was being persecuted for expressing views on Israel and Jews that were unpopular with the political elite. “I feel it is my duty to fight for the right to have an opinion and to express it. And not only for myself. Above all, for the people of Lithuania not to be afraid to speak out and criticize the government,” Žemaitaitis stated.[29] He went so far as to petition the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) to investigate whether Lithuanian authorities had violated his freedom of expression.

While Žemaitaitis played the victim in a vulgar yet not unique demonstration of how civil liberties can be cynically abused by hate-mongers, efforts to hold him accountable for his antisemitic rhetoric continued. In September 2024, the Vilnius Regional Court began hearing a criminal case against him for inciting hatred. Prosecutors charged him with hate speech, Holocaust denial, and inciting hostility toward Jews. The indictment referenced his claim that “Lithuanian Jews orchestrated mass deportations of Lithuanians in 1941.” Prosecutor Justas Laucius stated that “The evidence clearly shows a pattern of deliberate antisemitic rhetoric aimed at fostering division.”[30] Žemaitaitis denied the charges, asserting that his words were taken out of context.

As criminal proceedings began, Lithuanian politicians began to debate the broader implications of Žemaitaitis’s rhetoric openly. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis called for a “cordon sanitaire” to prevent radical parties from gaining power after the upcoming parliamentary election, warning that history shows the tragic consequences of pandering to such radical forces.[31]

To avoid such an outcome, Landsbergis and his ruling conservative Homeland Union party appealed to the Social Democratic party to engage in talks about forming a “unity” coalition. The Kaunas Jewish Community warned that any political party willing to form a coalition with Žemaitaitis and Nemunas Dawn would be complicit in normalizing hate speech. “We cannot erase nor forget that he [Žemaitaitis] used antisemitic rhetoric as a springboard for his election,” said Gercas Žakas, chairman of the Kaunas Jewish Community.

Their warnings and pleas fell on deaf ears.

The Social Democrats’ success in the elections, winning an additional 13 seats under the leadership of Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, was driven by public dissatisfaction with the government’s handling of key issues, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the influx of migrants from Belarus, which had sparked a considerable amount of political unrest.[32] Despite Lithuania’s economic stability, with robust growth and low inflation, the incumbent center-right government, led by Prime Minister Šimonytė’s Homeland Union, failed to maintain voter support.[33] Žemaitaitis’s Nemunas Dawn’s winning of 20 seats, an impressive achievement for a new party, owed, in part, to its promises of tax breaks for large families as well as its reassurances that it supports Ukraine in its war against fascist Russia, albeit through rhetoric that criticized the American involvement in the conflict.[34]

During the campaign, the Social Democrats pledged not to cooperate with Nemunas Dawn and initially appeared to adhere to their word. They entered into negotiations with the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union (LVŽS) and the Union of Democrats “For Lithuania.” The two had won eight and 14 seats, respectively. Negotiations with the LVŽS failed, at which point the Social Democrats reneged on their pledge and engaged Nemunas Dawn in coalition talks.

While the potential inclusion of Nemunas Dawn in coalition negotiations sparked controversy due to the legal proceedings against Žemaitaitis and his known antisemitic remarks and historical revisionism, the talks proceeded and resulted in the formation of a three-party coalition – Social Democrats, Nemunas Dawn, and For Lithuania, holding a parliamentary majority with 86 seats. As part of the agreement, Nemunas Dawn received three of the 14 cabinet positions in the new government: the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Energy, and the Ministry of Justice.

The coalition’s formation was met with considerable opposition, both domestically and internationally. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda called the coalition a “mistake” and made it clear that he would not appoint any ministers from Nemunas Dawn. Nausėda kept his pledge in principle, as Nemunas Dawn, instead of nominating party members for the cabinet positions, endorsed three independent candidates who the president confirmed. But the President did not keep his promise in spirit, as he de-facto permitted an antisemite to become kingmaker and a dominant force in the cabinet.

Noting the coalition agreement was already causing a problem for the country internationally, as important allies like the United States, Germany, and Israel expressed their misgivings and frustration, Nausėda questioned, “What self-respecting person would want to identify with the leader of this party?”[35]

During the first session of the new parliament and the swearing in of new members, protests against Nemunas Dawn and Žemaitaitis were held outside and in the cities of Kaunas and Tauragė, while opposition MPs (those who the previous year had worked to impeach him) left the parliament hall when Žemaitaitistook his oath of office.[36]

The Lithuanian Jewish Community (LJC) voiced strong concerns over the implications of the coalition. It expressed its dismay over the inclusion of a party led by a person who had made antisemitic remarks and was the subject of an ongoing criminal case for inciting ethnic hatred. LJC Chairwoman Faina Kukliansky strongly condemned Žemaitaitis’ comments, describing them as deeply offensive and harmful. The LJC warned that the coalition would damage Lithuania’s international reputation and harm the country’s democratic principles. This sentiment was echoed by opposition leaders, who argued that Lithuania’s democracy was at stake if hate speech was tolerated within the highest levels of government.

As the coalition government took shape, Žemaitaitis continued to face legal scrutiny for his antisemitic statements. In December 2024, Lithuania’s Prosecutor General formally requested again that the parliament strip Žemaitaitis of his immunity so that his criminal case could proceed. The request was approved, with 101 votes in favor and none against or abstaining.

Žemaitaitis, as always, dismissed the charges as politically motivated, claiming that the case was a form of “political persecution.”[37] At the time the Report went to print, criminal proceedings against Žemaitaitis were ongoing and the coalition remained intact.

Žemaitaitis’s political success can be attributed to his ability to harness populist rhetoric and capitalize on the dissatisfaction of certain segments of the Lithuanian electorate, particularly in rural areas. Žemaitaitis has sophisticatedly positioned himself as a populist outsider, offering a critique of the political elites in Vilna, including the Social Democrats and the more established conservative parties.

Žemaitaitis’s rhetoric often focuses on attacking the political establishment, which he portrays as corrupt and out of touch with the needs of ordinary Lithuanians.[38] His historically revisionist statements and legal battles helped Žemaitaitis frame himself as a victim of the system and become the leader of the third-largest party in parliament.

Yet, for Žemaitaitis and his party to become members of a governing coalition, more was needed: a mainstream party willing to renege on its pre-election pledges not to join forces with an openly antisemitic populist. The Social Democrats made a compromise that favored power over principles and, in the process, legitimized that which should never be legitimized again in Europe.

[1] BNS, “Lithuanian Social Democratic Leader Hails ‘Historic’ Election Victory,” lrt.lt, October 28, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2399206/lithuanian-social-democratic-leader-hails-historic-election-victory, and BNS, “Lithuania’s Parliamentary Run-offs: Social Democrats Seal Victory with 52 Seats,” lrt.lt, October 27, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2398287/lithuania-s-parliamentary-run-offs-social-democrats-seal-victory-with-52-seats.

[2] “Preliminary Data: Paksas's Comrade Žemaitaitis Elected to the Seimas [Lithuanian],” tv3.lt, November 29, 2009, https://www.tv3.lt/naujiena/lietuva/isankstiniai-duomenys-i-seima-isrinktas-r-pakso-bendrazygis-r-zemaitaitis-n321659.

[3] Canaan Lidor, “Israel Razes EU-Funded Palestinian School Near Bethlehem,” Times of Israel, May 7, 2023, https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-razes-eu-funded-palestinian-school-near-bethlehem/.

[4] Le Monde with AFP, “Israel Demolishes EU-Funded School, Drawing Criticism,” Le Monde, May 7, 2023, https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/05/07/israel-demolishes-eu-funded-palestinian-school-drawing-criticism_6025795_4.html.

[5] LRT.lt, “Žemaitaitis Antisemitism Controversy: What Exactly did he Say?,” lrt.lt, November 11, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2410821/zemaitaitis-anti-semitism-controversy-what-exactly-did-he-say.

[6] Remigijus Žemaitaitis, “I, a European, a Member of the Seimas, Apologize… [Lithuanian],” Facebook, May 10, 2023, https://www.facebook.com/RemigijusZemaitaitis1/videos/2177818865739973/.

[7] Lithuanian Jewish Community, “Lithuanian MP Denounces Israel for Razing Palestinian School EU Financed,” lzb.lt, May 10, 2023, https://www.lzb.lt/en/2023/05/10/lithuanian-mp-denounces-israel-for-razing-palestinian-school-eu-paid-for/.

[8] Zygimantas Šilobritas, “Žemaitaitis, Who was Sanctioned by Freedom and Justice for Antisemitic Remarks: Without Me, the Party's Rating will Fall [Lithuanian],” Delphi25, May 20, 2023, https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/lithuania/is-laisves-ir-teisingumo-sankciju-uz-antisemitinius-pasisakymus-susilaukes-zemaitaitis-be-manes-partijos-reitingas-kris-93415577.

[9] ELTA, “R. Žemaitaitis’ Words Sparked a Heated Debate in the Seimas [Lithuanian],” Lrytas, May 9, 2023, https://www.lrytas.lt/lietuvosdiena/aktualijos/2023/05/09/news/del-r-zemaitaicio-zodziu-aistros-seime-parlamentaras-pareiske-neatsiprasysias-nei-raginamas-ambasados-nei-kitu-seimo-na-26981383.

[10] Šilobritas, ““Žemaitaitis, Who was Sanctioned by Freedom and Justice.”

[11] Augustė Lyberytė, “Žemaitaitis Continues to Make Antisemitic Statements: Outraged by Šimonytė’s Visit to Israel [Lithuanian],” Delfi25, June 14, 2023, https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/lithuania/zemaitaitis-toliau-zarstosi-antisemitiniais-pareiskimais-piktinasi-simonytes-vizitu-izraelyje-93654685.

[12] Remigijus Žemaitaitis (@RemigijusZemaitaitis1), “Our Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė is even more Disgusting… [Lithuanian],” Facebook, June 13, 2023, https://www.facebook.com/RemigijusZemaitaitis1/posts/pfbid0u2zGaQNZ9Z3T3osoLADBz4TV5dMDF3SXpp1n3TRaN7rgWkTR1LCDLQrrDx9TbDqel.

[13] Remigijus Žemaitaitis (@RemigijusZemaitaitis1), “Lithuanian Jew Aleksandras Slavinas… [Lithuanian],” Facebook, June 14, 2023, https://www.facebook.com/RemigijusZemaitaitis1/posts/pfbid0272DhWb1q9ajqwrwE5NSZuSq7uvxA3UXVjHDnaqEBVF2fvtE3MZqbwdh2YLwn327Dl.

[14] Ibid.

[15] Remigijus Žemaitaitis (@RemigijusZemaitaitis1), “Even After 80 Years Have Passed… [Lithuanian], Facebook, June 15, 2023, https://www.facebook.com/RemigijusZemaitaitis1/posts/pfbid0RYJD5ThLrsEuL9fnBc8bno3RcHztfA7LKXkHVH4zVymH5zmP3TmrFTQFSFW4azirl.

[16] Carl Yonker, “Past Present: Lithuania and Latvia Struggle with Complicated Histories,” Perspectives no. 25, August 2023, https://cst.tau.ac.il/perspectives/past-present/.

[17] Eugenijus Gentvilas and Marijus Gailius, “A Conglomerate of Disinformation: How Anti-Vaxxers Turned Antisemites [Lithuanian],” Delfi25, July 7, 2023, https://www.delfi.lt/news/ringas/politics/eugenijus-gentvilas-ir-marijus-gailius-dezinformacijos-konglomeratas-kaip-antivakseriai-virto-antisemitais-93847863.

[18] Lithuanian Jewish Community, “Lithuanian Jewish Community Statement on Antisemitic Statements by a Member of the Lithuanian Parliament,” lzb.lt, June 22, 2023, https://www.lzb.lt/en/2023/06/22/lithuania-jewish-community-statement-on-anti-semitic-statements-by-a-member-of-the-lithuanian-parliament/.

[19] ELTA, “Žemaitaitis, Who Has Sparked Outrage over Antisemitic Statements, is Not Afraid of Impeachment [Lithuanian],” Lrytas, July 4, 2023, https://www.lrytas.lt/lietuvosdiena/aktualijos/2023/07/04/news/pasipiktinimo-del-antisemitiniu-pareiksimu-sulaukes-r-zemaitaitis-nebijo-apkaltos-paziuresime-kaip-i-tai-reaguos-teismai-27582105.

[20] Ibid.

[21] Milena Andrukaitytė and BNS, “Prosecutor's Office Will Decide on Žemaitaitis’s Statements after Receiving an Expert Opinion [Lithuanian],” Kauno Diena, June 28, 2023, https://kauno.diena.lt/naujienos/lietuva/salies-pulsas/prokuratura-del-r-zemaitaicio-pasisakymu-spres-gavus-ekspertu-isvada-1130530.

[22] Gailė Jaruševičiūtė-Mockuvienė, “Seimas Extends Work of Žemaitaitis Impeachment Commission [Lithuanian],” Delfi25, October 10, 2023, https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/lithuania/seimas-pratese-zemaitaicio-apkaltos-komisijos-darba-94755873.

[23] Gailė Jaruševičiūtė-Mockuvienė, “The Impeachment Committee will no Longer Try to Summon Žemaitaitis [Lithuanian],” Lrytas, October 23, 2023, https://www.lrytas.lt/lietuvosdiena/aktualijos/2023/10/23/news/apkaltos-komisija-r-zemaitaicio-prisikviesti-nebebandys-parlamentaras-samoningai-vengia-atvykti-i-posedi-28842542.

[24] LRT.lt, “MP Žemaitaitis, Accused of Antisemitism, to Run for Lithuanian President,” lrt.lt, January 22, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2176672/mp-zemaitaitis-accused-of-anti-semitism-to-run-for-lithuanian-president.

[25] Ibid., and Modesta Gaučaitė-Znutienė, “Don’t Joke, It Doesn’t Happen Like That [Lithuanian],” lrt.lt, February 12, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/naujienos/lietuvoje/2/2193549/nejuokaukite-taip-nebuna-seimas-emesi-zemaitaicio-nelieciamybes-pats-politikas-izvelgia-rinkimu-seseli.

[26] Lithuanian Jewish Community, “Lithuanian Constitutional Court Recognizes Antisemitic Statements Violate the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania,” lzb.lt, April 26, 2024, https://www.lzb.lt/en/2024/04/26/lithuanian-constitutional-court-recognizes-anti-semitic-statements-violate-the-constitution-of-the-republic-of-lithuania/, and BNS, “Lithuania’s Ex-MP Žemaitaitis Turns to ECHR Over His Impeachment Process,” lrt.lt, August 26, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2346878/lithuania-s-ex-mp-zemaitaitis-turns-to-echr-over-his-impeachment-process.

[27] BNS, “Lithuania’s Ex-MP Žemaitaitis.”

[28] Central Electoral Commission of the Republic of Lithuania, “May 12, 2024, Presidential Elections [Lithuanian],” rezultatai.vrk.lt, May 13, 2024, https://rezultatai.vrk.lt/?srcUrl=/rinkimai/1504/1/2070/rezultatai/lt/rezultataiPreRezultatai.html; Andrius Sytas, “Lithuania’s Nauseda Wins First Round of Presidential Election,” Reuters, May 13, 2024, https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/lithuanian-presidential-hopefuls-vow-stand-up-russian-threat-2024-05-12/; and Giedrė Balčiūtė, “Presidential Elections 2024: Nausėda and Šimonytė will Face Off in the Second Round [Lithuanian],” Delfi25, May 13, 2024, https://www.delfi.lt/news/daily/politics/prezidento-rinkimai-2024-antrajame-ture-susikaus-nauseda-ir-simonyte-96492565.

[29] BNS, “Lithuania’s Ex-MP Žemaitaitis Turns to ECHR.”

[30] Lithuanian Jewish Community, “Criminal Case against Former MP Žemaitaitis Begins,” lzb.lt, September 4, 2024, https://www.lzb.lt/en/2024/09/04/criminal-case-against-former-mp-zemaitaitis-begins/.

[31] BNS, “Lituanian FM Calls for ‘Cordon Sanitaire’ to Block Radicals from Power,” lrt.lt, September 4, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2352708/lithuanian-fm-calls-for-cordon-sanitaire-to-block-radicals-from-power.

[32] “Lithuania Seeks Compensation from Belarus for Migrant Crisis,” AP News, April 6, 2023, https://apnews.com/article/lithuania-belarus-migration-crisis-border-f5e2b2b6e34fdda425465b9c15ea264a.

[33] Giedre Peseckyte, “Lithuania’s Social Democrats Win Parliamentary Election,” Politico, October 27, 2024, https://www.politico.eu/article/lsdp-lithuania-social-democrat-parliament-election-ingrida-simonyte/.

[34] Andrew Higgins, “Party Whose Leader Is Known for Antisemitism to Join Lithuanian Government,” The New York Times, November 8, 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/08/world/europe/lithuania-coalition-antisemitism.html.

[35] Stasys Gudavičius, “The President on the Coalition with Nemunas Dawn [Lithuanian],” Verslo žinios, November 11, 2024, https://www.vz.lt/verslo-aplinka/2024/11/11/prezidentas-apie-koalicija-su-nemuno-ausra-padaryta-klaida-sios-partijos-nariu-ministrais-netvirtinsiu.

[36] BNS, “Lithuania’s New Members of Parliament Sworn In, Ceremony Ends with Protest,” lrt.lt, November 14, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2412786/lithuania-s-new-members-of-parliament-sworn-in-ceremony-ends-with-protest.

[37] Jūratė Skėrytė, “Lithuanian MP Žemaitaitis Stripped of Immunity,” lrt.lt, December 3, 2024, https://www.lrt.lt/en/news-in-english/19/2429633/lithuanian-mp-zemaitaitis-stripped-of-immunity.

[38] Samoškaitė, “Sneering at Israel, Swearing at Elites.”