Latest news with #PiS
Time Magazine
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Time Magazine
How Poland's Next President Will Boost the Far Right
The presidential election in Poland delivered the latest anti-incumbent surprise in what has been a tough period for establishment candidates the world over. The right-wing populist Karol Nawrocki, a historian with no political experience, won a narrow victory in a June 1 run-off vote over a candidate aligned with the centrist Prime Minister Donald Tusk and his plans for closer European integration. Nawrocki will take office on Aug. 6. Tusk must now buckle up for a bumpy ride. With a presidential veto, Nawrocki will halt Tusk's bid to liberalize abortion law and to overhaul a courts system packed with judges politically aligned with the previous far-right government led by the Law and Justice Party (PiS), a change demanded by the European Union. But Nawrocki won't just block Tusk's reform plans. He'll also work to exploit potential divisions within Tusk's four-party governing coalition, particularly among lawmakers in the conservative Polish People's Party, still the weakest link in Tusk's alliance. Read More: Polish Women Fight Back Against Restrictive Abortion Laws In fact, the one-point presidential election loss for his ally Rafal Trzaskowski leaves Prime Minister Tusk as a lame duck, and it underlines the growing frustration of many Poles with a rising cost of living and the now long-term presence of up to 2.5 million Ukrainian refugees across the country. While support for Ukraine's defense and fear and loathing of Russia span most of Poland's political spectrum, a sluggish economy leaves many feeling Ukrainians should return home. A recent survery by Poland's Centre for Public Opinion Research found that support for accepting Ukrainian refugees dropped from 81% in early 2023 to just 50% in March. Nawrocki's ability to block Tusk's agenda will leave more voters fed up with Tusk's government, boosting right and far-right parties ahead of parliamentary elections in 2027. It hasn't been all bad news for Tusk. He comfortably survived a no-confidence vote on June 11. He'll now make changes to the government itself, and focus only on the more broadly popular policies. Tusk will likely downsize the number of ministries, particularly for economic management, and placate key coalition partners with important new jobs. His government will prioritize social policies and new subsidies to take some of the edge off voters anxieties over Poland's economy, push plans to make housing more affordable, and avoid policies they know the new President will veto. Tusk's party will also try to undercut the right's hold on anti-immigration sentiment by focusing on border protection tougher laws. Even before the election, Tusk pushed through a temporary suspension of the right to asylum, bringing his government closer to the anti-immigrant positions of the far-right. But these are coping tactics, not a roadmap to winning the next elections. Its political base expects Tusk's Civic Platform party to loosen abortion restrictions. (Since 2021, Polish law permit abortion only in cases of rape, incest, or the serious threat to a woman's life or health.) His supporters also want him to restore rule of law in the country after the previous PiS government undermined the independence of some of Poland's political institutions. But 'elections have consequences,' as Dick Cheney, the U.S. Vice President now in the political wilderness, once said. Nawrocki will use the powers of the presidency to undermine Tusk on the European stage. He can't make foreign or security policy, but he can use his political alignment with Donald Trump and Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, as well as criticism of E.U. conformity, to remind leaders across Europe that Poland remains a polarized place and a shaky long-term bet for closer alignment with the bloc's policies and political values. In particular, support for neighboring Ukraine and its European aspirations will face new hurdles. Though Nawrocki supports Ukraine's war effort, he opposes E.U. and NATO membership for Ukraine and will push for cuts to benefits to Ukrainian refugees still in Poland. The new President won't have the power to create policy himself, but his willingness to criticize increasingly unpopular pro-Ukraine measures will make life much more difficult—for Ukrainians and for Tusk.
The Star
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
Polish liberal candidate's team lodge protest over presidential election
FILE PHOTO: Civic Coalition presidential candidate, Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski flashes the victory sign during the election evening, in Warsaw, Poland, June 1, 2025. REUTERS/Kacper Pempel/File Photo WARSAW (Reuters) -The campaign team of the defeated candidate in Poland's presidential election lodged a protest over alleged voting irregularities, its head said late on Monday, part of a wave of complaints from supporters of liberal Rafal Trzaskowski. Trzaskowski, from the ruling Civic Coalition (KO), was narrowly defeated by nationalist Karol Nawrocki in the June 1 second round, with the nationalist candidate backed by the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party getting 50.89% of the vote. Media reported irregularities in the second round and the Supreme Court has ordered a recount in 13 commissions, but this won't affect the final result materially. "In a democratic electoral process, every voter's vote must be guaranteed due respect by state institutions. The election protest of (Trzaskowski's) campaign representative was sent to the Supreme Court," the chief of Trzaskowski's campaign, Wiola Paprocka, wrote on X late on Monday. She gave no details of the wording of the protest. Another member of the Trzaskowski campaign team, Deputy Defence Minister Cezary Tomczyk said on Saturday he was filing a protest privately, pointing to an unusual increase in spoiled or blank ballots in areas where Trzaskowski won in the first round. He said that according to a model from UCE Research, there were 800 polling stations where Nawrocki had a "suspiciously high" score, and referred to irregularities in polling stations where a recount has already been ordered. The PiS party says that Trzaskowski's supporters are trying to undermine Poles' faith in the democratic process. Current president and PiS ally Andrzej Duda said on June 9 that "liberal-leftists, want to... take away our freedom of choice." Poles had until Monday to lodge protests with the Supreme Court, and the court has around two weeks to hear them. The Polish electoral commission on Monday confirmed the result of the election but said that in the second round, there were "incidents that could have affected the outcome of the vote." It said it would leave an assessment of these incidents to the Supreme Court. A Supreme Court spokesperson said on Monday that it had already registered over 3,000 protests and expected many more. (Reporting by Anna Wlodarczak-Semczuk; Editing by Alan Charlish and Bernadette Baum)
Straits Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Polish liberal candidate's team lodge protest over presidential election
WARSAW - The campaign team of the defeated candidate in Poland's presidential election lodged a protest over alleged voting irregularities, its head said late on Monday, part of a wave of complaints from supporters of liberal Rafal Trzaskowski. Trzaskowski, from the ruling Civic Coalition (KO), was narrowly defeated by nationalist Karol Nawrocki in the June 1 second round, with the nationalist candidate backed by the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party getting 50.89% of the vote. Media reported irregularities in the second round and the Supreme Court has ordered a recount in 13 commissions, but this won't affect the final result materially. "In a democratic electoral process, every voter's vote must be guaranteed due respect by state institutions. The election protest of (Trzaskowski's) campaign representative was sent to the Supreme Court," the chief of Trzaskowski's campaign, Wiola Paprocka, wrote on X late on Monday. She gave no details of the wording of the protest. Another member of the Trzaskowski campaign team, Deputy Defence Minister Cezary Tomczyk said on Saturday he was filing a protest privately, pointing to an unusual increase in spoiled or blank ballots in areas where Trzaskowski won in the first round. He said that according to a model from UCE Research, there were 800 polling stations where Nawrocki had a "suspiciously high" score, and referred to irregularities in polling stations where a recount has already been ordered. The PiS party says that Trzaskowski's supporters are trying to undermine Poles' faith in the democratic process. Current president and PiS ally Andrzej Duda said on June 9 that "liberal-leftists, want to... take away our freedom of choice." Poles had until Monday to lodge protests with the Supreme Court, and the court has around two weeks to hear them. The Polish electoral commission on Monday confirmed the result of the election but said that in the second round, there were "incidents that could have affected the outcome of the vote." It said it would leave an assessment of these incidents to the Supreme Court. A Supreme Court spokesperson said on Monday that it had already registered over 3,000 protests and expected many more. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
LeMonde
6 days ago
- Politics
- LeMonde
Poland delivers Trump his first electoral victory in Europe
The narrow margin of their candidate's win did not diminish the triumph for Polish nationalists. By garnering 50.89% of the vote in the June 1 runoff against Warsaw's liberal, pro-European Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski (49.11%), Karol Nawrocki returned Poland, the European Union's sixth-largest economy, to the conservative fold now dominated by Donald Trump. "You could […] say the 'Washington Express' has arrived in Warsaw," celebrated Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, another member of this conservative circle, delighted to expand the club that already includes Italy's Giorgia Meloni and Slovakia's Robert Fico. The driving forces of an election are first and foremost domestic. In this case, the ultraconservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, represented by Nawrocki – a 42-year-old historian and complete newcomer to politics – once again succeeded in stoking and exploiting the potent nationalism that permeates Polish society. In a country that has narrowly escaped disappearance multiple times and where it is common for conversations to turn to grievances against the world at large, and Western Europe in particular, this is a decisive factor.
Time of India
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Far-right parties surge across Europe
AI- Generated Image Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), has classified the Alternative for Germany (AfD) as "confirmed right-wing extremist. " Germany's other political parties want mostly nothing to do with it. Some politicians have even called for it to be banned. What does the situation look like in the rest of Europe? The Netherlands: Partij voor de Vrijheid Geert Wilders' Party for Freedom (PVV) recently caused the four-party coalition that it led to collapse because it had not cracked down hard enough on migration in its view. "I proposed a plan to close the borders for asylum seekers, to send them away, to shut asylum shelters. I demanded coalition partners sign up to that, which they didn't," Wilders told reporters. "I signed up for the strictest asylum policies, not for the demise of the Netherlands. " New elections are now planned for autumn. Although his party became the strongest force in the parliamentary elections, Wilders did not become head of government because he was deemed too radical by his coalition partners. Instead, independent politician Dick Schoof was nominated prime minister of the Netherlands. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Giao dịch vàng CFDs với sàn môi giới tin cậy IC Markets Tìm hiểu thêm If it were up to Wilders alone, he would ban all new mosques and the Quran. He is also a vocal critic of green strategies to tackle climate change, and he views the European Union as being too overbearing. Wilders is in complete control of his party, of which he is the sole registered member; even deputies and ministers are officially only supporters of the PVV. This allows Wilders to decide on the party program alone and appoint all election candidates himself. Poland: Prawo i Sprawiedliwosc The Law and Justice party (PiS) was defeated in the parliamentary elections at the end of 2023; Donald Tusk, the liberal former European Council president, has governed Poland as prime minister since then. But the PiS holds the presidency, and can use a veto to put the brakes on government policy. This has not changed since the presidential election at the end of May 2025, which was narrowly won by PiS-backed Karol Nawrocki, who ran an anti-European, and anti-German, campaign. Generally, however, as a party the PiS is rather cautious in Brussels, since it knows that the funds from the EU are important for Poland. It has also positioned itself on Ukraine's side in the war with Russia and advocates a strong Nato presence against its powerful neighbour. In terms of migration policy, however, the party shares the same hardline views of its European allies. On social issues, it is close to the Catholic Church in Poland and opposes the legalization of abortion, same-sex marriage and adoption. Hungary: Fidesz Fidesz-Hungarian Civic Alliance is probably the most successful far-right party in Europe. Thanks to its leader Viktor Orban, the party was in power in Hungary between 1998 and 2002 and continuously again since 2010. Founded in 1988, shortly before the collapse of communism, as a radical liberal force, the party remained on this course for a long time. But Orban and his party has swung to the right since at least 2015, when German Chancellor Angela Merkel proclaimed a "welcome culture" for refugees. Fidesz is now explicitly in favour of illiberal democracy, seeing the "Christian West" as threatened by foreign infiltration and wanting to strongly limit the influence of the EU. In stark contrast to the Polish PiS, the party has sought contact with Russia, despite the war in Ukraine, particularly on energy issues. Orban is also close to Russian President Vladimir Putin on an ideological level. However, unlike similar parties, the party does recognize human-made climate change as a threat. Slovakia : Smer — slovenska socialna demokracia Smer was founded by current Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico. Called Direction-Slovak Social Democracy, the party direction is clearly to the right and the social democracy it advocates has little to do with Germany's style of social democracy. Smer has warned that Slovakia is becoming too "foreign." Fico has said that Muslims are not able to integrate and in 2016 he said that Islam had no place in Slovakia. He has described the Ukrainians that Russia has attacked as "Nazis and fascists" and before the 2023 parliamentary elections, in which Smer emerged victorious, he announced that he would put an immediate stop to arms deliveries to Ukraine. He went on to do this, claiming that Nato and the United States were responsible for Russia's attack on Ukraine. This triggered protests across Slovakia. Fico's government has repeatedly criticized the EU's sanctions against Russia as being "meaningless and counterproductive." Spain: Vox Vox (Latin for voice), whose leader is Santiago Abascal, has risen fast since the party was founded in 2013. In the 2016 parliamentary elections, it won only 0.2% of the votes. This went up to 15% in 2019. Since then, its success has slumped somewhat. The party is nonetheless the third strongest political force in Spain at the moment. However, it has never participated in a federal government. The conservative Partido Popular (Popular Party) might have been willing to form a coalition with it, but instead it was the socialist Pedro Sanchez who formed a government. Vox's main concern is specific to Spain: The party believes that the self-government rights of autonomous communities such as Catalonia or the Basque Country should be revoked and that Spain should once again become a centralized state. There is also a particular Spanish flavour to the party's anti-immigration and anti-Islamic tones: Abascal has called for a new Reconquista. The first, which ended in 1492, was a series of campaigns waged by Christian rulers against Muslim kingdoms that had ruled the Iberian Peninsula for centuries. At the beginning of February, Vox hosted a major event called "Make Europe Great Again" in the Spanish capital Madrid. Participants included Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and French far-right politician Marine Le Pen. Denmark: Dansk Folkeparti The Danish People's Party was founded in 1995 and had its most successful period in the 2000s and 2010s. With its anti-immigration, anti-globalization and anti-EU positions, combined with demands for a strong welfare state, it provided support for several centre-right governments in the Danish capital Copenhagen. Notably, it was able to push through a tightening of the asylum system. But support for the party dwindled after 2019 as Denmark's Social Democrats, led by Mette Frederiksen, not only adopted its anti-asylum demands but also pushed them through. The People's Party only received 2.6% of the vote in the last parliamentary election in 2022. The immigration and asylum policy of Denmark's current Social Democratic government is one of the toughest in Europe.
