Origins , 1622 From an etymological standpoint, the word is of
Slavic origin, being derived from
Ruthenian sejmъ, sėjmъ and tracing back ultimately to
Polish sejm. The first traces of large nobility meetings can be found in the negotiations for
Treaty of Salynas in 1398. However, it is considered that the first Seimas met in
Hrodna in 1445 during talks between
Casimir IV Jagiellon and the Council of Lords. As the
Muscovite–Lithuanian Wars raged, the Grand Duke needed more tax revenues to finance the army and had to call the Seimas more frequently. Seven elections of the Seimas have since taken place under the constitution. with the recently added
Vytis above them, in 1990. The
first election in independent Lithuania was held on October 25, 1992, with a run-off on November 15. The election was won by the (ex-communist)
Democratic Labor Party of Lithuania, which gained 73 of the 141 seats in the
Sixth Seimas. The period was plagued by poor economic situation and financial scandals, including one involving former Prime Minister
Adolfas Šleževičius. The
election to the
Seventh Seimas was held on October 20, 1996 with the run-off on November 10. The election was won by the
Homeland Union – Lithuanian Conservative Party, which gained 70 seats and formed a coalition with the
Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party (16 seats). Vytautas Landsbergis served as the Speaker of the Seimas during the term. The
Eighth Seimas was
elected on October 8, 2000.
Liberal Union of Lithuania won the most seats of any party in the election, with 33, This term of the Seimas saw Lithuania fulfilling its long-term foreign policy goals of joining
NATO and the
European Union. Speaker of the Seimas Artūras Paulauskas also served for two months in 2004 as the Acting President of Lithuania after the impeachement of
Rolandas Paksas and before the new election took place. The Social Democrats remained at the helm of the government after the
2004 parliamentary election, which was held on October 10, with the run-off on October 24. The party was the third-largest in the
Ninth Seimas after the election with 20 seats, behind
Labour Party with 39 and Homeland Union (Lithuanian Conservatives) with 25, but managed to govern together with
New Union (Social Liberals) (11 seats), the Labour Party and the support of other parties. It was the first time since independence that a ruling government survived an election. Artūras Paulauskas was reelected as the Speaker of the Seimas, but was replaced by
Viktoras Muntianas in 2006. In 2006, the Labour Party left the coalition when its leader was removed from the post of Minister of Economy and the Social Democrats formed a coalition with the Civil Democracy Party, the Peasants and People's Party, and the
Liberal and Centre Union, although the coalition had to rule in a minority and relied on support of opposition parties. New Union (Social Liberals) later rejoined the coalition in early 2008. Česlovas Juršėnas once again became the Speaker of the Seimas in April 2008. The
Tenth Seimas was
elected on October 12, 2008, with a run-off on October 26. Homeland Union became the largest party with 45 seats, forming a coalition with populist and short-lived
National Resurrection Party (16 seats),
Liberal Movement (11 seats) and
Liberal and Centre Union (8 seats).
Arūnas Valinskas of the National Resurrection Party was elected the Speaker of the Seimas. Ten months later, on September 17, 2009, he was replaced by
Irena Degutienė of the Homeland Union, who became the first female Speaker of the Seimas. The term of the Tenth Seimas was plagued a severe economic crisis and the bust of the housing bubble. The Seimas and the Government responded with a wide-ranging and much-criticized tax reform and severe austerity, bringing about wide dissatisfaction and protests. As a result of widespread dissatisfaction with the ruling coalition, the ruling parties fared poorly in the
2012 parliamentary election. The Social Democrats became the largest party in the
Eleventh Seimas, with 38 seats, forming a government coalition with Labour Party (19 seats),
Order and Justice (11 seats) and
Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania (8 seats). Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania withdrawn from the coalition in 2014.
Elections in 2016 resulted in a smaller shift of power.
Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union, a minor party in the preceding parliament, won a sweeping victory, securing 54 seats in the
Twelfth Seimas (eventually rising to 59 as they were joined by several independents). The Social Democrats lost a lot of their support and finished with 17 seats (they were joined in the Seimas by the two members of Labour Party), but remained as a junior partner in the ruling coalition with Peasants and Greens Union. By 2019, the coalition included two other parties (Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania and Order and Justice), but the latter was expelled in the same year. The
Thirteenth Seimas was
elected in two rounds on 11 and 25 October 2020 and resulted in an upheaval of the government. The previously dominant Farmers and Greens Union lost much of their support, finishing in second place with 32 seats, and entering the opposition along with their previous partners. The Homeland Union finished first with 50 seats and formed a
centre-right coalition government with the Liberal Movement (13 seats) and the newly formed
Freedom Party (11 seats).
Elections in 2024, held on 13 and 27 October 2024 to determine the composition of the
Fourteenth Seimas, again resulted in an overturning of the government. The previously dominant Homeland Union finished in second place with 28 seats and entered the opposition along with their previous partners. The Lithuanian Social Democratic Party finished first with 52 seats and formed a
centre-left coalition with two newly formed parties: the
Union of Democrats "For Lithuania" (14 seats) and
Dawn of Nemunas (20 seats). The inclusion of Dawn of Nemunas in the ruling coalition sparked local and international backlash due to past
anti-Semitic statements made by the party's founder. ==Parliamentary mandate==