Marijampolė council to decide on acting mayor

The Central Electoral Commission of Lithuania (VRK) revoked the mandate of Marijampolė mayor Povilas Isoda on Thursday after a court found him guilty in a criminal case involving fraud, reported LRT.

On Monday, the Marijampolė municipal council will decide who will temporarily take over the mayor’s duties. According to the Electoral Code, once a conviction enters into force, the mayor’s powers must be revoked. The VRK stated that since the next regular municipal council and mayoral elections are less than a year away, no new elections will be held in Marijampolė. Instead, a temporary mayor appointed by the council will serve until the next elections in spring.

Isoda, a member of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP), was found guilty of abuse of office, fraud, and document forgery. He was fined €10,000, payable within two months, and barred from holding public office for three years. Isoda has announced plans to appeal the ruling to a higher court.

The court determined that Isoda’s actions caused significant financial and non-financial damage, undermined trust in municipal institutions, and were systematic in nature. According to case documents, he submitted 26 falsified expense summaries and 11 falsified expense reports to the municipality’s accounting department, fraudulently obtaining €2,479 in public funds.

Irena Lunskienė, the elder of the LSDP faction in the Marijampolė council, said last week that it remains unclear who will temporarily lead the municipality.