Artūras Paulauskas facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Artūras Paulauskas
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Paulauskas in 2015
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| Acting President of Lithuania | |
| In office 6 April 2004 – 12 July 2004 |
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| Prime Minister | Algirdas Brazauskas |
| Preceded by | Rolandas Paksas |
| Succeeded by | Valdas Adamkus |
| Ministry of Environment | |
| In office 31 January 2008 – 9 December 2008 |
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| Prime Minister | Gediminas Kirkilas |
| Preceded by | Arūnas Kundrotas |
| Succeeded by | Gediminas Kazlauskas |
| Speaker of the Seimas | |
| In office 19 October 2000 – 11 April 2006 |
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| Preceded by | Vytautas Landsbergis |
| Succeeded by | Vydas Gedvilas (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 23 August 1953 Vilnius, Lithuanian SSR, Soviet Union |
| Political party | Communist Party (1981–1989) Independent (1989–98) New Union (1998–2011) Labour Party (2011–2017) Freedom and Justice (from 2020) |
| Spouse | Jolanta Paulauskienė |
| Alma mater | Vilnius University |
Artūras Paulauskas (born on August 23, 1953, in Vilnius) is a well-known Lithuanian politician. He was the Speaker of the Seimas, which is Lithuania's parliament, from 2000 to 2006. He also served as the temporary, or Acting, President of Lithuania for a few months in 2004.
Contents
Early Life and Legal Career
Artūras Paulauskas studied law at Vilnius University and finished his degree in 1976. After graduating, he started working in the legal field. He was an investigator, which means he looked into crimes, and also a prosecutor, who brings legal cases against people accused of crimes.
Becoming Prosecutor General
He held important positions in the legal system. From 1987 to 1990, he was the Deputy Prosecutor General of Lithuania. Then, from 1990 to 1995, he became the main Prosecutor General of Lithuania. This is a very high legal role in the country. He later worked as Deputy Prosecutor General again and also had his own private law practice before entering politics.
Political Journey
Artūras Paulauskas began his political career by running for President of Lithuania in 1997-1998. He was supported by the President at the time, Algirdas Brazauskas. He almost won, getting 49.6% of the votes, but he narrowly lost to Valdas Adamkus.
Starting a New Party
After the election, Artūras Paulauskas decided to create his own political party called the New Union (Social Liberals). He became its leader in April 1998. This new party did quite well in the 2000 parliamentary election, getting almost 20% of the votes.
Leading the Parliament
Because his party did so well, Artūras Paulauskas was chosen to be the Speaker of the Seimas (Lithuania's parliament) on October 19, 2000. This meant he was in charge of leading the parliamentary meetings and making sure everything ran smoothly.
Serving as Acting President
In April 2004, the President at the time, Rolandas Paksas, was removed from office. Because of this, Artūras Paulauskas, as the Speaker of the Seimas, stepped in to serve as the Acting President of Lithuania. He held this important role until new elections were held and Valdas Adamkus became president again in July 2004.
Later Political Roles
In April 2006, Artūras Paulauskas was removed from his position as Speaker of the Seimas by a vote from the parliament members. Later, in 2008, he was appointed as the Minister of Environment. In this role, he spoke about the importance of using renewable energy sources in Lithuania, like solar or wind power, to help protect the environment.
See also
In Spanish: Arturas Paulauskas para niños
