Lithuania is divided into three levels of administrative divisions. The first-level division consists of 10 counties (Lithuanian: singular – apskritis, plural – apskritys). These are sub-divided into 60 municipalities (Lithuanian: plural – savivaldybės, singular – savivaldybė), which in turn are further sub-divided into over 500 smaller groups, known as elderships (Lithuanian: plural – seniūnijos, singular – seniūnija).
At the end of its tenure as a Soviet Socialist Republic, Lithuania's administrative divisions consisted of 44 regions, 12 cities, 80 towns, 19 settlements, and 426 rural districts.[1] The reform of this system was an immediate concern for the new government.[2] The Constitution of Lithuania, ratified in 1992, delegated the power of establishing future administrative units to the Lithuanian Parliament (Seimas). Accordingly, the Seimas passed two fundamental laws: a 1993 law on government representation and a 1994 law specifying the territorial-administrative units and their boundaries.[2] The current system of a set of municipalities under 10 counties was codified by 1995.[2] Several changes were made in 2000, resulting in 60 municipalities.[3]
Ordinary municipal councilors are elected every four years from electoral lists using proportional representation. The mayor, who used to be a member of the council until 2023,[4] is elected directly by the residents using the two-round system since 2015 reforms.[5] Before then, the mayors were elected by the municipal councils.
The largest municipality by population in Lithuania is Vilnius City Municipality with 593,436 residents, home to one fifth (20.7%) of the country's population. The smallest municipality by population is Neringa Municipality with 4,173 (0.1%) residents.[6]
Municipalities are established to perform certain functions provided by law. According to the abovementioned Republic of Lithuania Law on Local Self-Government, the functions of municipalities are "functions related to local government, public administration and provision of public services defined by the Constitution and attributed to municipalities by this and other laws". The processes of integration into international organizations - like the EU and NATO - are considered to be important external factors influencing the development of municipal powers in the country. Lithuania, which has become a member of these organizations, has been assigned completely new responsibilities, some of which, naturally, also belonged to municipalities. In the case of EU integration, municipalities have been assigned the necessary information supply to the European Commission, and in the case of integration into NATO, municipalities have had new functions related to security issues.
Politics of Lithuania takes place in a framework of a unitary semi-presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the president of Lithuania is the head of state and the prime minister of Lithuania is the head of government, and of a multi-party system.
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state.
The territory of Lithuania is divided into 10 counties, all named after their capitals. The counties are divided into 60 municipalities : 9 city municipalities, 43 district municipalities and 8 municipalities. Each municipality is then divided into elderates. This division was created in 1994 and slightly modified in 2000.
Alytus County is one of ten counties in Lithuania. It is the southernmost county, and its capital is the city of Alytus. Its territory lies within the ethnographic region of Dzūkija. On 1 July 2010, the county administration was abolished, and since that date, Alytus County remains as the territorial and statistical unit.
Marijampolė County is one of the ten counties in Lithuania. It is in the southwest of the country and roughly corresponds to the historical region of Sudovia. Its capital and the largest town is Marijampolė. On 1 July 2010, the county administration was abolished, and since that date, Marijampolė County remains as the territorial and statistical unit.
Šiauliai County is one of ten counties in Lithuania. It is in the north of the country, and its capital is Šiauliai. On 1 July 2010, the county administration was abolished, and since that date, Šiauliai County remains as the territorial and statistical unit. It borders Latvia.
Joniškis District Municipality is a territorial unit of Lithuania with a population of about 30,000. The administrative center of the municipality is the city of Joniškis.
A seniūnija is the smallest administrative division of Lithuania. An eldership may comprise a very small region consisting of few villages, one single town, or a part of a big city. Elderships vary in size and population depending on their location and nature. A few elderships make up a municipality. Šilainiai, Dainava, Verkiai, Žirmūnai and Pašilaičiai are the most populous elderates, with population counts over 40,000, around twice the population of some entire municipalities.
Pagėgiai Municipality is a municipality in Tauragė County, Lithuania.
Lithuania is now a country in the Baltic region of Europe.
Jurbarkas District Municipality is a municipality in Tauragė County, Lithuania
Klaipėda District Municipality is a municipality in western Lithuania, east of the city of Klaipėda, by the Curonian Lagoon and the Baltic Sea. Its administrative centre is the town of Gargždai. It covers an area of 1336 km². The municipality owns most of the Seaside Regional Park. It is home to the famous The Dutchman's Cap Hill, the highest cliff on the Lithuanian coast.
The Alytus District Municipality is a municipality in Alytus County, Lithuania, located in the Dzūkija ethnographic region.
Druskininkai Municipality is a municipality in Alytus County, Lithuania.
Lazdijai District Municipality is a municipality in Alytus County, Lithuania.
Marijampolė Municipality is a municipality in Marijampolė County, south-western Lithuania. Its administrative seat and largest town is Marijampolė.
Šilalė District Municipality is a municipality in Tauragė County, Lithuania.
Seniūnaitija("sub-eldership") is the lowest level administrative-territorial unit in Lithuania. Seniūnaitija is led by a seniūnaitis who represents communities of inhabited places. Seniūnaitis are elected for a 2-year tenure.
The major administrative subdivisions of Kaunas, Lithuania, are elderates . They are further partitioned into traditional neighborhoods of two levels: "city parts" and "city territories".
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