Malinauskas could run in elections after serving sentence
Tuesday 15th September 2026 on 20:30 in
Lithuania
LRT reported Tuesday that Druskininkai Mayor Ričardas Malinauskas could take part in next year’s municipal elections if he completes the sentence imposed by the court and fulfils the related criminal measure.
According to the Central Electoral Commission adviser Indrė Ramanavičienė, Malinauskas would need to pay the €60,000 fine imposed by the final court judgment and the additional €30,000 specified as a criminal measure, for a total of €90,000.
“For R. Malinauskas to take part in the upcoming municipal council and mayoral elections, he must carry out the sentence imposed by the court, by paying the fine, and the criminal measure must also be carried out,” Ramanavičienė told ELTA.
The Lithuanian Court of Appeal on Monday upheld the conviction of Malinauskas for influence peddling. The judgment became final immediately after the ruling.
As the conviction was not changed, Malinauskas will no longer be able to continue serving as mayor. The Central Electoral Commission is expected to revoke his mandate at a meeting on Thursday, in line with the Electoral Code.
The commission said it received an extract on Tuesday from the Register of Suspects, Defendants and Convicts and its archive concerning Malinauskas. It states that the lower court’s sentence remains in force: he was found guilty and must pay a fine. The record also lists property confiscation as a criminal measure.
Because less than a year remains before the next regular municipal council and mayoral elections, a new election would not be held in Druskininkai. A temporary mayor appointed by the municipal council would serve until next spring.
Malinauskas’s former adviser and current council member Aivaras Kadziauskas, as well as judges from different courts who dealt with matters related to the Vijūnėlė manor, were also prosecuted in the case. Appeal judge Evaldas Gražys said there had been no doubt about the politician’s guilt and that the case contained extensive evidence of the guilt of politicians and other people.