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January 6, 2003
VILNIUS, Lithuania -- Rolandas Paksas, a former prime minister who flew a stunt plane to promote his candidacy, won Lithuania's presidential runoff Sunday, preliminary results showed.
With 99 percent of the votes counted, Paksas had 55 percent, while President Valdas Adamkus had 45 percent. Final results will be announced Friday, the Central Election Commission said.
"I always said I would win," Paksas said. "I know the problems of this country and I know how to solve them."
Adamkus, a 76-year-old former U.S. citizen, had been expected to win the vote after recent success in guiding the Baltic country toward entry into NATO and the European Union.
But while Adamkus ran largely on his record, Paksas, 46, mounted an aggressive campaign that included promises of a better life for Lithuanians and a daring stunt flight. He also pledged to keep Lithuania's Western-oriented foreign policy on track.
Lithuania, like neighboring Latvia and Estonia, was among 10 nations invited in December to join the 15-nation EU on May 1, 2004. In November the country was invited to join NATO.
"Foreign policy achievements are not enough to win the presidency in Lithuania," said political analyst Ceslovas Iskauskas.
The lanky, white-haired Adamkus distinguished himself as one of the few politicians not to become embroiled in scandals, and his approval ratings soared to near 80 percent.
He also guided the Baltic state into relative prosperity, boosting economic growth and keeping unemployment low, and was voted the country's person of the year for 2002.
Despite the tremendous popularity, Adamkus did not campaign hard enough after the Dec. 22 election, said political analyst Mindaugas Degutis.
"Adamkus has wasted his popularity in a passive campaign," said Degutis, an analyst with the Vilnius Political Science Institute.
Adamkus sounded an optimistic tone for the country.
"Whatever decision is made today, Lithuania will stay on the path it was following for the past 12 years," he said.