Donald Tusk Returns to the Role of Polish Prime Minister

Mr. Donald Tusk’s centrist coalition managed to beat Mr Morawiecki’s PiS despite it being the single largest party in terms of votes secured. PiS was unable to form a coalition which paved the way for Tusk to form government again. He was officially sworn in on Wednesday.

Donald Tusk’s Election to Power

Donald Tusk was previously the Prime Minister of Poland from 2007 to 2014. In October’s elections, the group led by Mr. Tusk, which supports the European Union, won most of the seats. This was a big deal because more than 70% of people voted, which is a higher turnout than usual. The group is made up of three parties: Mr. Tusk’s Civic Coalition (KO), the Third Way, and the Left.

People have high hopes for the new coalition government. They have promised to fix problems with the justice system that were caused by previous administrations. Mr. Tusk, the leader, is working on a plan to bring back the rule of law. He also wants to unlock €36 billion from the EU for Poland, and he plans to reverse a 2020 court decision that restricted abortion and strengthen protections for LGBT people.

For new laws to be official, they need the president’s approval, and Mr. Duda, the president, can say no to them. The coalition does not have enough members in parliament to override the president’s decision if he disagrees with their plans.

Tusk Parliament — Credit: BARTOSZ MORĄG/https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/

The Government under PiS

The Law and Justice (PiS) party, which is now leaving power, had a lot of conflicts with the European Union (EU). These disputes were about things like the freedom of the legal system, following the law properly, and protecting the rights of minorities. Because of these issues, the EU stopped giving them billions of funds.

Furthermore, the rhetoric employed towards refugees and migrants under the previous government had been getting controversial with a shift towards an anti-migrant narrative including the use of slogans such as “stop the Ukrainianization of Poland”. It was actually the first time Poland was experiencing immigration as opposed to the usual emigration.

Poland, as a member of both the European Union (EU) and NATO, was being closely observed by its allies due to its changing stance on supporting Ukraine and handling refugees from the conflict. Mr. Tusk, a former president of the European Council, has aimed to bring Poland closer to its European allies and renew support for Ukraine. His party, the Civic Coalition (KO), collaborated with the Third Way and the New Left, running on separate tickets but sharing a common goal of rebuilding connections with Europe.

Users on X seem to have divided opinions about the new PM.

Watch Donald Tusk be confirmed as Poland’s PM here.