Lithuania's election-winning Social Democrats designate deputy leader as PM

By Andrius Sytas

VILNIUS (Reuters) - Lithuania's opposition Social Democrats, the winners of Sunday's parliamentary election, have decided on deputy leader Gintautas Paluckas to be the Baltic republic's next prime minister.

Social Democrat leader Vilija Blinkeviciute told reporters on Wednesday Paluckas was "best prepared" for the top job as she had opted not to take it on for health reasons.

Social Democrats won 52 seats in the 141-member parliament, defeating the centre-right Homeland Union party in an election dominated by frustration with the cost of living and worries over potential threats from neighbouring Russia.

The Social Democrats are now in talks with several smaller parties to form a majority governing coalition.

The left-leaning party has pledged to maintain Lithuania's hefty defence spending which, at about 3% of GDP this year, is the sixth biggest per capita in the NATO alliance.

The popular Blinkeviciute, 64, led the Social Democrat election campaign and had pledged to become prime minister if elected, but indicted on Tuesday she had changed her mind.

"I am a pensioner... I do not have the ability to be a prime minister because of my age and my health," she said. Blinkeviciute will however remain a member of the European Parliament, where she has served since 2009.

Paluckas, 45, led the Social Democrats in 2017-21, but resigned in favour of Blinkeviciute after the party's lacklustre showing in the 2020 election.

(Reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius; editing by Mark Heinrich)