Modesta Petrauskaitė

She comes from a modest family background – in an interview, Petrauskaitė recounted that her grandmother made homemade candies which the family sold during holidays, a small business that influenced her from childhood.

She lost her father at a young age and was raised by her mother and grandmother, who started a small homemade candy business that the family sold at local fairs to make ends meet.

Modesta Petrauskaitė was born on 9 February 1987 in Panevėžys, Lithuania.

Modesta Petrauskaitė is unmarried and has no spouse (as officially recorded).

In 2014, she earned a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Mykolas Romeris University.

In 2012, she graduated from Kaunas University of Technology with a diploma in Business Administration.

In 2006, she graduated from Panevėžys Vytautas Žemkalnis Gymnasium with a secondary school diploma.

In 2022, she became the Director of the Steponas Kairys Foundation, serving in that role until 2024.

She worked as an assistant to Member of European Parliament Juozas Olekas from 2021 to 2024.

In 2017, she was the director of the public non-profit organization “Mes Darom” (Let’s do it Lithuania initiative).

Between 2016 and 2020 she served as a coordinator for the activities of local divisions of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP).

From 2016 to 2020, while serving as the coordinator for the activities of LSDP’s local divisions, Petrauskaitė was effectively a party staff member on a modest salary. Although official figures are not published, such a role would typically pay only a few hundred euros per month (estimated). This party position was one of her primary paid engagements alongside her council duties during that period.

From 2012 to 2016, Petrauskaitė worked as an adviser to a member of the Seimas (MP Domas Petrulis).

She has been serving as a Member of the Seimas (Lithuanian Parliament) since 14 November 2024.

During her time on the Panevėžys District Council, she chaired the council’s Committee for Rural and Social Affairs.

She was a member of the Panevėžys District Municipal Council for a decade (from 2014 until 2024).

Petrauskaitė joined the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party (LSDP) in 2010 and has been a party member since then.

She served as a Vice-Chair of the LSDP’s Panevėžys District branch.

She has served as Vice-Chair of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Youth Union (LSDJS).

She also became a Vice-Chair of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Women’s Union (LSDMS).

As a prominent party member, she is part of the LSDP’s national council.

On November 13, 2025 she was appointed as Chair of the Seimas Commission for Suicide and Violence Prevention.

In the Seimas, she is a member of the Committee on Social Affairs and Labour (since November 19, 2024).

She also sits on the Seimas Committee for the Future as a member (since November 21, 2024).

From December 5, 2024 until November 12, 2025 she served as Deputy Chair of the Seimas Commission for Suicide and Violence Prevention.

She serves as Deputy Head of the Seimas Provisional Group of Women, which unites female parliamentarians (since December 12, 2024).

She is the Chair of the Seimas Group for Inter-Parliamentary Relations with the Swiss Confederation (since 12 December 2024).

She serves as the Head of the Seimas Provisional Group for Relations with the Holy See (since 10 December 2024).

She leads the Seimas Provisional Group for the Promotion of Civic Participation and Community Awareness (since 10 December 2024).

She is the Chair of the Seimas Group for Inter-Parliamentary Relations with the United Arab Emirates (appointed on 5 December 2024).

She is also a member of the Lithuanian delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, representing the Seimas in this international parliamentary organization.

She heads the Seimas Provisional Group of Friends of Panevėžys Region (since 3 December 2024).

In the 2024 parliamentary elections, she was the LSDP candidate in the single-member Aukštaitijos constituency (No. 33) and won in the runoff with 59.11% of the vote (defeating Guoda Burokienė who received 34.84%).

She was listed as number 45 on the LSDP’s national candidate list – the highest-ranked candidate from Panevėžys region – in the Seimas elections candidate list.

In the 2020 parliamentary elections, Petrauskaitė was ranked 14th on the LSDP’s national candidate list and ran in the single-member constituency covering Panevėžys district (the Aukštaitijos constituency). She did not win the seat – it was secured by Guoda Burokienė of the Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union – and the LSDP’s list mandates did not reach her position, so she did not enter the Seimas that term.

Between 2016 and 2024, she participated in multiple elections but only secured a parliamentary seat in 2024 after winning the single-member Aukštaitijos constituency. Prior to that, her bids (including the 2020 Seimas elections) had not resulted in a mandate.

Petrauskaitė first ran for the Seimas in 2016 on the LSDP’s national list (she was 45th on the list, the highest-ranked Panevėžys region candidate), but was not elected, as the Social Democrats won too few mandates that year.

Upon becoming a Seimas member in late 2024, Petrauskaitė’s base salary jumped to roughly €4,000 per month (after taxes), reflecting the increased pay for parliamentarians.

Until mid-2023, being a municipal council member was essentially an unpaid role (apart from small per-meeting stipends). In mid-2023, Lithuania introduced a fixed salary for savivaldybės tarybos nariai (municipal councilors) equal to 20% of the respective mayor’s wage – for Panevėžys District Council that would be on the order of €600 gross per month (around €380 net).

During 2021–2024, as an assistant to Member of European Parliament Juozas Olekas, Petrauskaitė’s income was derived from the European Parliament’s budget for assistants. While exact figures are not public, local assistants in Lithuania typically earn on the order of a thousand euros per month (estimated).

Petrauskaitė has not accumulated significant personal wealth; her public asset disclosures do not indicate substantial property or business interests, and her income has derived mainly from salaried public-sector positions.

Around 2016, as a Panevėžys district councillor and an MP’s aide, Petrauskaitė’s total monthly income was under €500, reflecting the low pay for her public roles at the time.

Throughout her political career, Petrauskaitė’s asset and income declarations have remained very modest. In a 2016 interview, she revealed that her total monthly earnings from all jobs barely reached €500. She has reported no significant property, savings, or business income in public disclosures, which aligns with her consistently low earnings in those years.

She sits on the board of the Junior Chamber International (JCI) Panevėžys chapter, contributing to youth leadership initiatives.

She founded the Panevėžys District Youth Organizations Council “Apskritasis stalas” and was its long-term chairperson.

She is a co-founder of the non-profit initiative “Let’s do it Lithuania” (VšĮ Let’s do it Lietuva), which organizes civic environmental campaigns.

She has been involved with Rotary International, serving as the Chair of the Activities Committee of the Vilnius Gediminas Rotary Club.

She chaired the Panevėžys District Youth Organizations Council (Jaunimo reikalų taryba) as its long-term chairperson.

On 23 May 2025, she and her Social Democratic colleagues proposed declaring 2027 as the Year of Communities in Lithuania to strengthen civic engagement.

In December 2023, she authored an opinion column on the LRT news portal, where she was identified as a Panevėžys district councilor and LSDP member.