# Juozas Olekas

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Lithuanian surgeon and politician

Juozas Olekas Olekas in 2025 Speaker of the Seimas Incumbent Assumed office 10 September 2025 Preceded by Saulius Skvernelis Member of the Seimas Incumbent Assumed office 27 October 2024 Member of the European Parliament In office 2 July 2019 – 15 July 2024 Constituency Lithuania Minister of National Defence In office 13 December 2012 – 13 December 2016 Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius Preceded by Rasa Juknevičienė Succeeded by Raimundas Karoblis In office 4 July 2006 – 9 December 2008 Prime Minister Gediminas Kirkilas Preceded by Gediminas Kirkilas Succeeded by Rasa Juknevičienė Personal details Born (1955-10-30) 30 October 1955 (age 70) Bolshoy Ungut, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Soviet Union (now Russia) Party LSDP (since 1989) Alma mater Lithuanian University of Health Sciences Vilnius University

**Juozas Olekas** (born 30 October 1955) is a [Lithuanian](/source/Lithuania) surgeon and politician, a former Minister of National Defence, from 2006 to 2008. In 1990 and from 2003 to 2004 he also served as the [Health Minister](/source/Ministry_of_Health_(Lithuania)). In 2019 he was elected to the European Parliament.[1]

Olekas studied at [Kaunas Institute of Medicine](/source/Kaunas_University_of_Medicine) from 1974 to 1976, and at [Vilnius University](/source/Vilnius_University) from 1976 to 1980.

Between 1994 and 1997 he was a chief physician at the Vilnius University hospital.

Olekas is married to Aurelija Olekienė, they have two daughters.

Olekas was [Vilija Blinkevičiūtė](/source/Vilija_Blinkevi%C4%8Di%C5%ABt%C4%97)'s main competitor in the [2021 Social Democratic Party of Lithuania leadership election](/source/2021_Social_Democratic_Party_of_Lithuania_leadership_election), finishing second with 44% of the vote.

As of 2 August 2025 he is seen as one of the most likely candidates (together with [Mindaugas Sinkevičius](/source/Mindaugas_Sinkevi%C4%8Dius), [Robert Duchnevich](/source/Robert_Duchniewicz) and [Inga Ruginienė](/source/Inga_Ruginien%C4%97)) to replace former Prime minister [Gintautas Paluckas](/source/Gintautas_Paluckas).

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["EP NARIAI IŠ LIETUVOS"](http://www.europarl.europa.eu/lithuania/lt/europarlamentarai/ep-nariai-i%C5%A1-lietuvos). *www.europarl.europa.eu* (in Lithuanian). Retrieved May 16, 2020.

## External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to [Juozas Olekas](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Juozas_Olekas).

- [Biography at the Ministry of National Defence](http://www.kam.lt/index.php/en/144696/)

- [Biography at the Lithuanian government website](http://www3.lrs.lt/seimu_istorija/w3_lrs.seimo_narys-p_asm_id=7193&p_int_tv_id=784&p_kalb_id=1&p_kade_id=3.htm) (in Lithuanian)

v t e Members of the European Parliament from Lithuania (2019–2024) Auštrevičius (Renew) Blinkevičiūtė (S&D) Jakeliūnas (Greens–EFA) Juknevičienė (EPP) Kubilius (EPP) Maldeikienė (EPP) Mažylis (EPP) Olekas (S&D) Ropė (Greens–EFA) Tomaševski (ECR) Uspaskich (NI)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Juozas Olekas](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juozas_Olekas) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juozas_Olekas?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.