Love him or hate him, Antanas Guoga (pictured), better known as Tony G, always keeps the poker world buzzing. This week, the notorious poker pro and businessman announced he would be running for a seat in the European Union Parliament.

Guoga declared his candidacy via his blog and Facebook page, saying, “I’m going to EU Parliament in Brussels to change Lithuania. I made second on the list as a candidate for the Liberal Party and I can’t tell you how excited and happy I am about it.”

At the moment, the Party has only one representative in Brussels, but Guoga vows to fight hard for another seat. “I believe that Lithuanian politics needs new people and new blood and I want to be in a position to change policy and I qualify as ‘new blood.’ I have been fortunate enough to be reasonably successful in my life and I have new ideas and hope to inspire others to come into politics too,” he said.

The European Union Parliament is the institution that executes the legislative process of the EU and is seen as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world. Members of Parliament are elected by direct vote and hold their position for five years. A total of 766 seats are allocated according to the population of each member state.

However, Guoga’s behavior at the poker table can be decidedly un-statesmanlike. He is well known for mercilessly berating and antagonizing his opponents into making mistakes at the table.

One his most infamous tirades was directed toward poker pro Ralph Perry. He goaded the Russian-born player into calling all-in pre-flop with K-J. Guoga took the pot down with nothing but A-2 and continued to pile on abuse, telling his opponent he was going to “send him back to Russia.” Guoga later told Bluff, “It was a pretty emotional tournament and I decided to give him a bit of verbal. The whole table knew where I stood and I went on to win that tournament, so I achieved what I wanted to achieve.”

His knack for needling his opponents seems to serve him well. He has earned almost $5 million in live tournaments alone and regularly plays in private ultra high-stakes cash games in Europe and Asia.

Away from the poker tables, the Lithuanian born poker pro has had an eclectic career in business and is highly involved with many organizations in his native country. Apart from buying PokerNews and running his own sports book, he managed the 2012 Lithuanian Olympic basketball team, created the Lithuanian Poker Federation, and makes considerable donations to various charities. In 2012, he was presented with the Lithuanian Business Lighthouse Award for his work promoting the country in a positive manner.

For now, Guoga will be putting poker on hold. He has promised to play in the PartyPoker Premier League event in November, but will spend the rest of his time focusing on his political ambitions.

Wrapping up the announcement on his blog, Guoga took a final shot at former U.S. Presidential candidate John McCain, alluding to the mini-scandal that broke out on the blogosphere when the Senator was caught playing poker during a war hearing: “One thing you can count on in my new political world – there will be no online poker played on a phone or laptop during debates on my watch!”

Want the latest poker headlines and interviews? Follow PocketFives on Twitterand Like PocketFives on Facebook. You can also subscribe to our RSS feed.