Ethics watchdog seeks more information on Matjošaitytė consultations

LRT reported that Lithuania’s Chief Official Ethics Commission will gather additional information before deciding whether to investigate Central Electoral Commission member Laura Matjošaitytė’s consultations for the Nemunas Dawn party and a possible violation of the Law on the Adjustment of Public and Private Interests.

The commission decided to collect the material at a meeting on Wednesday.

“After assessing the reports and publicly available information, the commission decided to gather additional information and then, after assessing all the circumstances, decide whether to open an investigation,” said Virginija Aleksejūnė, deputy chair of the Chief Official Ethics Commission, after the meeting.

She said the commission would contact Nemunas Dawn, the Central Electoral Commission and media representatives before deciding whether there were grounds to launch an investigation.

The commission began considering the issue in late August after receiving a report from an individual alleging that Matjošaitytė may have violated the law.

In August, the Delfi news portal reported that Matjošaitytė had advised Nemunas Dawn on membership fees and helped prepare the party’s response to the Central Electoral Commission before returning to the body.

Matjošaitytė, who became a member of the commission in May last year, did not publicly declare the consultations. She initially refused to disclose whether she had been paid by the party, but later said she had not received any money.

Matjošaitytė has said she did not face a conflict of interest when working on commission matters related to Nemunas Dawn. The party’s deputy chair, Robertas Puchovičius, has confirmed that it communicated with Matjošaitytė. Party leader Remigijus Žemaitaitis called the reported links between the party and Matjošaitytė absurd.

Matjošaitytė chaired the Central Electoral Commission from 2017 to 2021, according to BNS. She returned as a commission member in May last year after her and lawyer Maksim Reznikov’s candidacies were put forward by then Justice Minister Rimantas Mockus, who had been delegated by Nemunas Dawn.

In May 2025, the newly formed commission considered violations related to Nemunas Dawn’s political campaign financing. Matjošaitytė voted in favour of finding violations in some cases and abstained in others.

She has maintained that the votes did not create a conflict of interest or grounds for her recusal because, after returning to the commission, she no longer provided consultations to political organisations.