Poland yesterday inaugurated its foreseeable change of political cycle after the elections of October 15 with the constitution of the new Parliament that emerged from the polls, in an unprecedented situation in which two blocs, the ultra-conservative populist in power for the last eight years, and the pro-European but diverse, claim their option to govern.
The until now ruling party, Law and Justice (PiS), of Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, was the most voted but lacks a majority, while the sum of coalitions and parties that support the liberal candidate, Donald Tusk, does have the seats necessary.
Despite the arithmetic, President Andrzej Duda – officially without a party, but originally from PiS – yesterday formalized the task of forming a government to Morawiecki, as he had already announced on television on Monday, November 6, with the argument that it is the most voted force, “in accordance with the Constitution and tradition.” Duda thus gives time and margin to PiS and forces Tusk to wait, possibly until mid-December and perhaps even until the days before Christmas.
In the new Sejm (lower house of Parliament), Law and Justice has 194 seats out of the 460 that make up the hemicycle, compared to a majority of 248 deputies, belonging to the three allied opposition groups: Civic Coalition (KO), the coalition led by Tusk’s party, Civic Platform (PO); Third Way – coalition of the centrist Christian Democrat Poland 2050 and the Polish People’s Party (PSL), heir to the old peasant party; and the leftist Lewica. The far-right Confederation party – which last week said it would not support PiS – has 18 seats.
Despite this panorama of figures, PiS assures that it will “do everything possible” to be able to present a new government to President Duda within the constitutional period of 14 days, and then submit to Parliament’s vote of confidence during the following 14 days. If Morawiecki, who yesterday resigned as prime minister to become acting, does not manage to obtain the approval of the new Sejm, the chamber itself will appoint another candidate for prime minister – according to the mechanism provided for in the Constitution -, which would be in pure logic Tusk. Due to the accumulation of deadlines, since the new candidate must also present his cabinet and then be sworn in by Parliament, there could well be no new government until Christmas.
Already last Friday, opposition leaders signed a formal coalition agreement in anticipation of their candidate, Donald Tusk, 66, former prime minister (2007-2014) and former president of the European Council (2014-2019), being new prime minister. “The nation has done its job and now its representatives must repair the Republic of Poland, repair democracy,” Tusk told Civic Coalition deputies yesterday.
The new balance of forces was already reflected in the constituent session when the opposition achieved the election of one of its leaders, Szymon Holownia, as president of the Sejm. Former Catholic journalist and television star Szymon Holownia, 47, leader of the centrist Poland 2050 party, defeated PiS candidate Elzbieta Witek by 265 votes to 193. “After this vote, no one can doubt that there is a majority in this chamber ready to take power; “This chamber will no longer be an office at the service of the government, it will no longer be a voting machine,” the newly elected told the deputies. Holownia will serve until 2025, when, under a coalition agreement, the position will pass to Wlodzimierz Czarzasty, leader of the leftist Lewica.
