Court upholds ruling that Širvintos mayor engaged in psychological pressure during elections

A Lithuanian regional administrative court has ruled that the Central Electoral Commission (VRK) was justified in finding that Širvintos district mayor Živilė Pinskuvienė and Lithuanian Regions Party representative Laura Jakutytė exerted psychological pressure on election officials during the 2024 parliamentary elections, LRT reports.

The court dismissed an appeal by Pinskuvienė and Jakutytė on Wednesday, upholding the VRK’s April 2025 decision that their actions—including repeated criticism, unfounded complaints, and disruptive behaviour—created intolerable working conditions for members of the Deltuva South polling district commission.

According to the court’s statement, the two women’s conduct was “systematic, deliberate, and prolonged,” with their raised voices, baseless accusations (such as claims that a written pledge was not read aloud, that agenda items were misnumbered, or that a procedural question was not asked loudly enough), and demands for the commission chair’s dismissal amounting to psychological coercion.

“Such behaviour made the commission’s work impossible and forced the chair and members to resign, thus constituting psychological violence,” the court ruled.

While the court found no direct evidence that Pinskuvienė and Jakutytė influenced the commission’s decisions, it concluded their actions were clearly intended to sway outcomes. Their claims that all statements were fact-based and respectfully delivered were rejected as contradictory to the established facts.

The ruling may still be appealed.