Szymon Hołownia, Marshal of the Polish Sejm, to Visit Vilnius University and Meet Students

On 6 February (Tuesday), at 10:00, Szymon Hołownia, Marshal of the Polish Sejm, and his delegation will pay a visit to Vilnius University (VU). He will meet with Prof. Rimvydas Petrauskas, Rector of VU, Dr Artūras Vasiliauskas, Vice-Rector for Partnerships, and Czeslaw Okinczyc, Member of the VU Council. Accompanied by the Rector, the representative of the Polish Parliament will view the exhibition of various rarities from the VU Library heritage collections in the F. Smuglewicz Hall.

According to the VU Rector, Lithuania and Poland are bound not only by their historical legacy but also by the present and partnerships in various fields, including academic ones.

‘Productive cooperation forges connections between representatives of both the humanities and social fields, as well as of physical and natural sciences. The Polish language is an important part of the identity of our multilingual university while leading Polish universities have also established centres for Baltic studies. We are pleased that institutional and cultural collaboration is enhanced by the opportunity for our students to engage directly with Polish political leaders,’ said Rector Prof. Petrauskas.

The Marshal of the Polish Sejm will have a discussion with VU students in the Aula Parva (10:30–12:00) on "What can a European citizen expect from politicians?", which will address the following questions: what is the secret behind political leaders’ success?; what determines it?; how can we promote youth engagement in political life?; is there something that the Marshal himself grasped about politics that political scientists or students might not know?; how does he manage to fulfil his political duties and keep his promises to the electorate?

The debate will be held in English and moderated by Dr Mariusz Antonowicz, political scientist and lecturer at the VU Institute of International Relations and Political Science.

Szymon Hołownia, a former columnist and TV presenter, ran as an independent candidate in the 2020 Polish presidential elections and came third in the first round. He has founded a public political movement known as ‘Polska 2050’ (Poland 2050). Since 2023, Mr Hołownia has held the second most important post in Poland as the Marshal of the Sejm, who becomes the Acting President in the event of the President’s death or resignation.