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A constitutional referendum was held in Lithuania on 12 May 2024, alongside the first round of the presidential elections. [1] Voters were asked whether they approve of a constitutional amendment to allow Lithuanian citizens to hold dual citizenship. The results showed that a majority of voters were in favor of the proposal. However, the initiative failed to pass due to insufficient turnout. [2]
As holding dual citizenship is banned in most cases, [1] [lower-alpha 1] around 1,000 Lithuanian citizens give up their citizenship each year to take another citizenship. [4] Concerns have been raised over the effects of the citizenship requirements on the country's demography, given the population decline which saw the Lithuanian population decrease from 3.5 million in 1990 to 2.8 million in 2024. [5]
A referendum on the same issue was held in 2019. Although 74% voted in favour, the number of affirmative votes was below the 50% of all registered voters required to validate the referendum. [6]
The holding of the 2024 referendum was approved by the Seimas on 23 May 2023 by a vote of 111–0. [1]
The Lithuanian diaspora is estimated at two million people and is largely concentrated in countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, Brazil, Russia, and Canada. It is estimated that there are around 600,000 people of Lithuanian descent living in the United States.
The "Yes" vote was endorsed by presidential candidates Giedrimas Jeglinskas, Aurelijus Veryga and Dainius Žalimas, as well as most political parties. [7]
A study by the Government of Lithuania showed that 60 percent of respondents intend to participate in the referendum. [10]
 | This section needs to be updated.(May 2024) |
| Pollster | Fieldwork date | Sample size | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For | Against | Other/ Undecided | |||
| Vilmorus | 22 November–2 December 2023 | 1,000 | 51.7 | 33.2 | 15.1 |
| Baltijos tyrimai | 23 October–7 November 2023 | 1,013 | 60 | 26 | 14 |
| 2019 referendum | 1,322,135 | 73.92 | 26.08 | - | |
As votes in favor represented around 43% of registered voters, and the referendum required an absolute majority of registered voters (not just participating voters) to be approved, the proposal failed, similar to the previous one in 2019.
| Choice | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| For | 1,043,265 | 74.49 | |
| Against | 357,274 | 25.51 | |
| Total | 1,400,539 | 100.00 | |
| Valid votes | 1,400,539 | 97.98 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | 28,843 | 2.02 | |
| Total votes | 1,429,382 | 100.00 | |
| Registered voters/turnout | 2,401,807 | 59.51 | |
| Source: VRK | |||
Following the failure of the referendum, MP Dalia Asanavičiūtė, who initiated the proposal, said that the results had put Lithuania into “a situation of legal impossibility” where dual citizenship cannot be expanded through a constitutional amendment. This led her to file a bill in the Seimas on 13 May to amend the Law on Citizenship to allow Lithuanian citizens in EU and NATO member states to keep their Lithuanian passports. Seimas Speaker Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen also expressed disappointment at the outcome of the referendum, but opposed lowering the threshold for a future vote on the issue. [11] President Gitanas Nausėda said that the referendum organisers made insufficient efforts to present their case to voters. However, he suggested that a lower threshold for such measures to pass be implemented in the future. [12]
The Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania defines the legal foundation for all laws passed in the Republic of Lithuania. The first constitution of the contemporary republic was enacted on 1 August 1922. The current constitution was adopted in a referendum on 25 October 1992.
Elections in Lithuania are held to select members of the parliament, the president, members of the municipal councils and mayors, as well as delegates to the European Parliament. Lithuanian citizens can also vote in mandatory or consultative referendums.
Lithuania does not recognise same-sex marriages or civil unions. A bill to grant same-sex couples some limited legal rights and benefits is pending in the Seimas.
There have been twelve referendums in Lithuania since it declared independence from the Soviet Union on 11 March 1990. Because of strict requirements, only four referendums have been successful. Older Lithuanian laws required that more than half of all registered voters would vote in support of a proposal for it to become a binding obligation to the government. In 2002, this requirement was lowered to one third of all registered voters.
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Events in the year 2024 in Lithuania.
Giedrimas Jeglinskas is a Lithuanian politician and former NATO official who is the candidate of the Union of Democrats "For Lithuania" in the 2024 Lithuanian presidential election. Previously, he served as Assistant Secretary General of NATO from 2019 to 2022 and Vice-Minister of National Defence from 2017 to 2019.
Dainius Žalimas is a Lithuanian lawyer, jurist and politician who served as the chairman of the Constitutional Court of Lithuania from 2014 to 2021. He is the candidate of the Freedom Party in the 2024 Lithuanian presidential election.
