Lithuanian Nationalist Union
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Lithuanian Nationalist Union
Lietuvių tautininkų sąjunga |
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|---|---|
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| Leader | Audrius Rudys |
| Founded | August 19, 1924 |
| Headquarters | Vilnius |
| Membership | 1,453 (as of August 2012) |
| Ideology |
Lithuanian nationalism National conservatism Social conservatism Euroscepticism |
| Political position | Right-wing |
| Colours | Blue, Gold |
| Seimas |
0 / 141
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| Municipal councils |
1 / 1,473
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| Website | |
| tautininkai |
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The Lithuanian Nationalist Union (Lithuanian: Lietuvių tautininkų sąjunga, LTS), also known as the Nationalists (Tautininkai), is a nationalist, right-wing political party in Lithuania, founded in 1924 when the Party of National Progress merged with the Lithuanian Farmers' Association. It was the ruling party of Lithuania from the 1926 Lithuanian coup d'état in December 1926 to the Soviet occupation in June 1940. The party was re-established when Lithuania declared independence in 1990.
The party did not enjoy popular support and in the May 1926 parliamentary elections managed to win only 3 seats out of 85. However, its leaders Antanas Smetona and Augustinas Voldemaras were popular and influential public figures. The party was conservative and nationalistic; it stressed the need for a strong army and a strong leader.
During the December 1926 coup the military deposed the democratically elected government and invited Smetona to become the new President of Lithuania and Voldemaras the new Prime Minister. The Nationalists and the Lithuanian Christian Democrats formed a new government. However, the relationship between the two parties soon became tense as Christian Democrats regarded the coup as a temporary measure and wished to hold new elections to the Seimas. In April 1927 Smetona dissolved the Seimas and in May Christian Democrats resigned from the government. The Nationalists remained the only party in power for another thirteen years.
Voldemaras established Iron Wolf (Geležinis Vilkas) as the paramilitary wing of the Nationalists. Political opponents were incarcerated. The new constitution of 1928 established a presidential dictatorship. In 1929, Smetona removed his party colleague Voldemaras from the office of prime minister and ruled autocratically until Lithuania was conquered by the Soviet Union in 1940.
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Wikipedia