Algirdas Butkevičius

Algirdas Butkevičius ( born November 19, 1958 in Paežeriai in a circle Radviliškis ) is a Lithuanian politician, since December 2012 Prime Minister of the country. He's since March 7, 2009 Chairman of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party and was thus automatically a candidate of that party in the presidential elections in May 2009.

Study and career

After finishing school in 1977 Šeduva Algirdas Butkevičius studied at the Technical University in Vilnius (then Civil Vilnius School ) Industrial Engineering for the construction industry. After graduating in 1984 he was hired in the region Vilkaviškis and until the end of the Soviet Union in 1990 worked as a construction manager and city architect. Until 1995, he held senior positions in the county government, then, until his election to parliament, only one year as sales manager at the construction company " AB Vilkasta ", the successor to the former state-owned construction company operating in the district Vilkaviškis.

In June 2008 he defended his doctoral thesis in the social sciences about a more effective and transparent in the way distribution of state tax revenues at the University of Vilnius.

Political career since 1990

With the end of the Soviet Union began Butkevičius ' political career when he was elected to the Rajonrat Vilkaviškis. In 1991, he joined the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania was founded again ( LSDP ), after he had already been in the Soviet Union a short time member of the Communist Party ( 1985-1988).

From 1991 to 1995 he was deputy mayor of the Rajongemeinde Vilkaviškis. From 1995 he was in the party council, from 1997 to 1999 and again since 2001, he was the party executive of the LSDP, the determined since the union with the successor party to the Communist Party of Lithuania, the Democratic Labor Party of Lithuania, much of their political life in Lithuania. On March 7, 2009 Algirdas Butkevičius was at the Party Congress on the new party chairman in the wake of the former Prime Minister Gediminas Kirkilas, who was not taken up. Butkevičius received 329 votes, against 242 votes for the favorite of the ex- Prime Minister Brazauskas Zigmantas Balčytis, and 26 for the former party chairman Vytenis Andriukaitis.

Butkevičius was the last to date, led by the Social Democrats, Government Finance ( November 2004-May 2005 ) and Minister of Transport ( July 2006-November 2008 ). His speedy resignation as finance minister was in dispute in the former coalition government to plans for a tax reform; Butkevičius itself has indicated that it was probably been about to force his resignation. As a result, he lost in May 2005, his position as one of the seven deputy party chairman.

Since 1996, Algirdas Butkevičius heard for the LSDP continuously to the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas.

Since December 2012 he is Lithuanian head of government.

Private

Algirdas Butkevičius is married to Janina and had two children, daughter and son Indrė Martynas. The latter died on 25 March 2008 at age 25 with his girlfriend Marta Andriuškevič in a traffic accident in Vilnius.