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People and Justice Union
The People and Justice Union (Centrists, Nationalists) (Lithuanian: Tautos ir teisingumo sąjunga (centristai, tautininkai)) is a right-wing populist political party in Lithuania. It is currently not represented in the Seimas. The chairman of the party is Petras Gražulis.[10] Gražulis was impeached from the Lithuanian parliament in late 2023 and is not allowed, until 2033, to participate in any national elections. HistoryBackground The party was established as the National Centre Party (Lithuanian: Nacionalinė centro partija), before being renamed the Lithuanian Centre Party (Lietuvos Centro partija) in 2005. In the parliamentary election of 2016, the Lithuanian Centre Party participated in a coalition (Anti-corruption coalition of Kristupas Krivickas and Naglis Puteikis) with the Lithuanian Pensioners' Party, and received 6.1% of the popular vote and one seat.[11] In the 2019 Lithuanian municipal elections, the Centre Party received 1.25% of votes nationwide and won municipal council seats in Klaipeda, Varena and Alytus (increasing the number of seats from 3 to 8).[12] During the 2019 election to the European Parliament the party received 5.13% of the national vote, but did not receive any representatives in the European Parliament. FoundationOn 26 October 2019, the Congress of the Lithuanian Centre Party decided to change the official name of the party to the Centre Party "Welfare Lithuania". The party fully supports the welfare state idea of the President of the Republic of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda. In 2020, the party's name was changed again, this time to the Centre Party – Nationalists. In 2021 it merged with the Lithuanian Nationalist and Republican Union to become the People and Justice Union. The party nominated Petras Gražulis in the 2024 Lithuanian presidential election, but his candidacy was rejected due to a prior impeachment.[13][14] The party operates an unofficial "Headquarter for the Reelection of Donald Trump in Lithuania", created in cooperation with members of the Lithuanian-American community. The party's chairman Gražulis is also the chairman of the headquarters.[15] PlatformAccording to the party's platform, the People and Justice Union
It defines itself as centre.[16] It has also been described as right-wing.[17][18] It is populist and claims that the state is under the control of an oligarchic clan, opposes LGBT rights, supports small and medium business and the creation of a national commercial bank.[19] It is soft Eurosceptic, demands the supremacy of national law over European law and describes the current system in the European Union as "a dictatorship of political correctness".[20] Election resultsSeimas
European Parliament
See alsoReferences
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