Palionis seeks to become mayor of Birštonas

Former agriculture minister Andrius Palionis will run for mayor of Birštonas in next year’s local elections, LRT reported.

Palionis announced his decision on Facebook on Friday, saying he would run with the political committee Together for Birštonas. He said he wanted to foster unity, make local government more open and support residents, businesses, children, older people and people with disabilities.

Palionis said Birštonas was important to him, recalling childhood summers in Šaltinėnai, where his grandparents lived. He has returned to the area and is making a home there with his family, he wrote.

Palionis was a long-time member of the Social Democratic Party. In 2024, he ran for parliament with the Lithuanian Regions Party, which won no seats; he later left the party. He has been elected to parliament since 2012 and served as agriculture minister in 2019-2020 and 2025-2026.