Saulius Skvernelis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Saulius Skvernelis
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Official portrait, 2024
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| Speaker of the Seimas | |
| Assumed office 14 November 2024 |
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| Preceded by | Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen |
| Chairman of Union of Democrats "For Lithuania" | |
| Assumed office 29 January 2022 |
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| Preceded by | Office established |
| 16th Prime Minister of Lithuania | |
| In office 13 December 2016 – 11 December 2020 |
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| President | Dalia Grybauskaitė Gitanas Nausėda |
| Preceded by | Algirdas Butkevičius |
| Succeeded by | Ingrida Šimonytė |
| Member of the Seimas | |
| Assumed office 13 November 2020 |
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| Constituency | Multi-member |
| In office 14 November 2016 – 12 November 2020 |
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| Preceded by | Linas Balsys |
| Succeeded by | Radvilė Morkūnaitė-Mikulėnienė |
| Constituency | Karoliniškės |
| Minister of the Interior | |
| In office 11 November 2014 – 13 April 2016 |
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| Prime Minister | Algirdas Butkevičius |
| Preceded by | Dailis Alfonsas Barakauskas |
| Succeeded by | Tomas Žilinskas |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 23 July 1970 Kaunas, Lithuania |
| Political party | DSVL (2022–present) |
| Other political affiliations |
Order and Justice (2014–2016) LVŽS (2016–2022) |
| Spouse | Silvija Skvernelė |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Vilnius Gediminas Technical University |
Saulius Skvernelis (born 23 July 1970) is a Lithuanian politician. He served as the prime minister of Lithuania from 2016 to 2020. Before that, he was a police commissioner and the Minister of the Interior from 2014 to 2016. Even though he was an independent politician, he was supported by the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union. This made him the first head of government in Europe to be mainly backed by a green party.
In 2022, he started his own political party, the Union of Democrats "For Lithuania". He is currently a member of the Seimas, which is Lithuania's parliament. He is also the chairman of his party. Since 14 November 2024, he has been the Speaker of the Seimas.
Contents
Saulius Skvernelis: A Leader in Lithuania
Early Life and Police Work
Saulius Skvernelis was born in Kaunas, Lithuania. He studied at the Vilnius Technical University and finished in 1994. After university, he started working at the Lithuania Police Academy.
In 1998, Skvernelis began his career in the Lithuanian police force. He worked as a traffic police inspector in Trakai District Municipality. He moved up through the ranks and became the General Commissioner of Police for Lithuania on 7 March 2011. As General Commissioner, he was in charge of the entire police force.
Becoming a Minister
In late 2014, the previous Minister of the Interior resigned. The Order and Justice party asked Skvernelis to take the job, even though he was not a member of their party. He accepted the offer. On 5 November 2014, President Dalia Grybauskaitė appointed him as Minister of the Interior. The Seimas (Lithuania's parliament) confirmed his appointment on 11 November.
From the start, Skvernelis was very popular as Minister. He almost resigned in November 2015 after a serious incident in Vilnius. However, many members of the Seimas supported him, and the Prime Minister refused his resignation. During the 2015 European migrant crisis, he spoke out against negative talk about migrants. He also had some disagreements with other leaders during his time as Minister.
Leading the Government: Prime Minister
By 2016, Skvernelis was one of the most popular politicians in Lithuania. Several political parties asked him to join them. However, he decided to join the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union for the 2016 Lithuanian parliamentary election. This party had only one seat in the parliament at the time. Because he joined an opposition party, he had to resign as Minister of the Interior.
Even though he was not a party member, Skvernelis led the Farmers and Greens' election list. The party won a surprising victory in the 2016 election. They won 54 out of 141 seats in the Seimas. Skvernelis himself was elected to the Seimas from the Karoliniškės area in Vilnius.
Since the Farmers and Greens had never held so many seats, they needed to form a coalition with another party. They chose to work with the Social Democrats. As a result of these talks, it was agreed that Skvernelis would become the Prime Minister of Lithuania. President Dalia Grybauskaitė appointed him on 22 November 2016. He officially became Prime Minister on 13 December 2016, after the Seimas approved his government's plan.
Important Changes as Prime Minister
During his time as Prime Minister, his government made several changes. They created child benefits and increased wages and pensions. They also cut income taxes. However, a reform for teacher pay led to the biggest teacher strike in Lithuania's history. Skvernelis is seen as a practical politician who focuses on what works.
In February 2018, Skvernelis spoke at an LGBT event in Vilnius. He asked the Seimas to recognize same-sex partnerships.
Challenges in the Coalition
The coalition government faced some challenges. In 2017, the Social Democrats' new leader wanted to end the agreement with the Farmers and Greens. Most of the Social Democrats in parliament decided to stay in the coalition and formed a new party. This meant Skvernelis's government became a minority government, meaning it had fewer than half the seats in parliament.
The government regained its majority in 2019 after the 2019 Lithuanian presidential election. Skvernelis negotiated with smaller parties to join the coalition. However, this majority only lasted for four months.
Life After Being Prime Minister
In January 2019, Skvernelis announced he would run for president. He came in third place in the 2019 Lithuanian presidential election. After this result, he first said he would resign as prime minister, but later changed his mind.
In March 2021, Skvernelis was appointed to the Seimas's Board as the opposition leader. He held this position until September 2021. Later in 2021, he left the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union group in the Seimas. He then formed a new political group called Democrats "For Lithuania."
On 29 January 2022, he officially formed his own political party, the Union of Democrats "For Lithuania" (DSVL). He was chosen as its first chairman.
Speaker of the Seimas
Before the 2024 Lithuanian parliamentary election, Skvernelis, as the leader of the Union of Democrats "For Lithuania," said he did not want to form a coalition with his old party, the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union. He criticized their leader.
In the election, Skvernelis's party came in fourth place, winning 14 out of 141 seats in the Fourteenth Seimas. Skvernelis himself lost in his local area election but still got a seat in parliament because of his position on his party's list.
After the election, the winning Lithuanian Social Democratic Party invited Skvernelis's party and the Farmers and Greens to talk about forming a government. However, there were many disagreements between the two parties. In the end, the Social Democrats and Skvernelis's party signed a coalition agreement with another party called Dawn of Nemunas.
Saulius Skvernelis was elected the Speaker of the Seimas on 14 November 2024. He received 107 votes in favor.
Awards and Recognition
Poland: Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland (15 July 2019)
See also
In Spanish: Saulius Skvernelis para niños
