Survey: one in six people think things in Lithuania are going in the wrong direction

One in six Lithuanians believes that things are going in the wrong direction in the country, according to a poll carried out in March by „Baltic Research“ on behalf of Elta.

A survey in March showed that a quarter (24%) of respondents believe that things are getting better. More than a tenth (13%) of respondents say they have no opinion on the matter.

Rasa Ališauskienė, head of the Lithuanian-British market and public opinion research company „Baltijos tyrimai“, which conducted the survey, said that people's moods are reflected in the situation around them: there are conflicts everywhere, there are disagreements, there is a war in the Middle East which has led to an increase in the price of fuel, other things, and so on.

„And of course, one of the more important things – is the uncertainty in thinking about the future. Because at the moment we really see that there is uncertainty about what is going to happen next. Already during the survey there was a lot of thinking from the government and ministries that this is just the beginning of economic problems and price rises, and that it could be worse in the autumn," the sociologist commented.

She believes that the government's communication, especially about containing the fuel price crisis, is partly contributing to this sentiment.

„When it comes to the same fuel, far from reassuring, people are alarmed by comparisons between what is being done in neighbouring countries – in Poland, Latvia, and here “, – noted R. Ališauskienė.

Positive young people, more pessimistic – older people

In the February poll, the proportion of those who thought things were going in the wrong direction was higher. The proportion of respondents who felt this way was 66%, 28% felt the opposite and 6% were undecided.

At the beginning of last year, undecided respondents accounted for 1% of all respondents, while those who thought that the situation in the country was improving accounted for 33% and those who thought that the situation was negative accounted for 66%.

„Young people under 30 (39%), respondents with higher education (30%), young people in education (44%) and executives (31%) are more likely to think that things in Lithuania have been improving lately.

At the moment, people aged 50-64 are more likely to think that things are getting worse in Lithuania (71% think they are getting worse), as well as rural residents (72%), unemployed people and housewives (75%) and workers and farmers (69%).

According to the researchers, the most dissatisfied with the current situation in Lithuania are those of „Nemunas aušros“ (78% of them think that the situation in the country has been turning for the worse recently) and the Lithuanian Peasant Popular Union (74%). The most optimistic voters are supporters of the Liberal Movement (39% of whom think the situation in the country has been getting better recently) and the Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats (36% think it is getting better).

The poll took place on 19–30 March 2026 at 110 sample points. 1009 Lithuanian residents (aged 18 and over) were interviewed by personal interview. The margin of error of the survey results is up to 3.1%