Polish voters placed for a narrow presidential race after 10 years of Duda

When the Poles vote for a new president on Sunday, they are expected to create a second round between the Liberal Mayor of Warsaw Rafal Trzaski and the National Conservative historian Carol Naroki.

If public opinion surveys are correct, it would mean a June 1st competition between candidates supported by the two parties that have dominated Polish policy over the last two decades, a domination that some voters say are fed.

Trzaskowski, the current front athlete, is Deputy Leader of Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s central civil platform (PO).

Nawrocki, currently interviewed between 4% -6%, is supported by the opposition party of law and justice (PIS), which lost power 18 months ago.

The President of Poland has the power to veto government bills, so what happens in these elections is significant.

The Tusk coalition does not have a large enough parliamentary majority to cancel this veto that leaving President Andrzej Duda, a former member of PI and ally, has used several times.

This barrier can now fall, as Duda cannot work again after serving two consecutive five -year terms.

Observers outside Poland present Tusk’s election as Prime Minister at the end of 2023 as a rescue of liberal democracy after eight years of right-wing authoritarian populism by the Government, led by PIS.

Critics have widely accused the PI of turning public media into rough propaganda over their conservative Catholic worldview, politicizing the civil service and judicial system, and punishing judges who dared to oppose the reform.

But the Tusk coalition government also uses dubious legal methods to combat public media control.

Tusk has stopped the right of migrants arriving at the Belarus border to apply for asylum and failed to fulfill many of their promises to the campaign as a liberalization of the strict abortion law of the country.

“This is not the triumph of liberal values. This is a choice between a stupid and authoritarian right populism and a hypocritical, and in my eyes a morally corrupt liberal populism,” said Constantie Gaybert, a colonist for the BBC Kululura.

The presidential election can be won in the first round on Sunday by more than 50% of the vote, but recent public opinion studies suggest that they will be resolved on June 1st.

Miroslav Kagnavski, a member of the Green Party, which belongs to the width Tusk civil coalition, will vote for TRZASKowski, despite some reservations.

He told the BBC: “I am disappointed that the coalition government is heading to the right electorate instead of standing up for its values.”

In one of the presidential debate, the candidate, backed by PIS Nawrocki, proudly waving a mini Polish flag, tried to disturb Tzaskowski, giving him a little flag to the rainbow.

In the past, the mayor of Warsaw was a vocal supporter of LGBTQ+ rights and attended the marches of equality in the capital.

Trzaskowski took the flag and put it on the floor, causing the left candidate Magda beating to pass, saying “I am not ashamed of it, I will gladly take it from you.”

Kaznowski said: “Migration, LGBT+, women’s rights and the environment have fallen from the agenda, but we are still at risk of returning to the authoritarian government, which is striving for Eastern values.”

Tusk promised Polish women legitimate abortions until the 12th week of pregnancy, but he did not fulfill his promise.

He chaired a wide coalition built around his own right group, which includes smaller left and conservative parties.

Disagreements within the abortion coalition and legalization of partnerships for the same sex stopped even before President Duda had a chance to veto them veto them.

After the war of Russia in neighboring Ukraine, State Security dominated political discourse.

Foreign Minister Radoslav Sikorski said that the “removal” of PI for security, including difficult migration policy, is crucial for winning the 2023 election.

This year, Poland plans to spend 4.7% of its GDP on defense, more than any other NATO member.

Tusk wants to offer all the elderly men the chance to conduct military training. Trzaskowski was filmed, going through basic workouts during the campaign.

Liberal mayor’s difficult messages about security and migration made PI accuse him of saying something to win votes.

This is a view shared by a civil servant Wojciech Karlik, who plans to vote for PIS -backed Nawrocki candidate.

“Nawrocki will fight for the interests of Poland in the EU. It is reliable unlike Tzaskowski, who continues to change his mind on issues like migration,” he said.

Recently, Nawrocki fell under fire because of the accusations, which he denies bought an apartment of the adult council in bad health with a 90% discount on the market price in exchange for promises of assistance and care.

At his own recognition of his team, Naroki was surprised when he lost contact with the pensioner last December. Local media reported that the man had lived in a nursing home paid by taxpayers for six months until this stage.

Public opinion polls suggest that the accusations have not damaged the chances of the worship so far.

But the numbers show that none of the 13 candidates will win enough votes to avoid leaking between the two front running.

PIS, led by 75-year-old Yaroslav Kachinsky, and Tusk’s PO are the two parties that have dominated Polish policy over the last 20 years, and some voters have been fed by the duopola.

In March, the 38-year-old right-wing libertarian candidate and brewer Slavomir Menten, who attracted voters, especially young men, with his anti-migrant and cutting taxes during his beer meetings in small cities and cities, they appeared near Nawrocki in the second place.

But his support was dropped as he gave an interview, calling for the introduction of student training fees and a ban on abortion even in cases of rape.

Alexandra Janushevich, a psychotherapist, told the BBC: “I am tired of the po and pi with PI. The policy I see is the most form of populism that plays the emotions of the voters.

“I’m still not resolved (for whom to vote), but I will throw myself after that.”

The human rights lawyer Malgorz Schuleka agrees that there is tiredness, both with the duopola and the inability of the Tusk government.

“Polish policy looks a bit like going to McDonald’s,” she told the BBC. “You go to hope for something else and leave with a burger and fries.

“My hope is for a president who can freeze the polarization in the country and we can start talking to each other again.”