Parliamentary Election Splits Polish Government

PiS maintained control of the Sejm while opposition parties took the Senate in Poland’s parliamentary elections. (Flickr)

A historic 61 percent of Poland’s registered voters turned out at the polls in parliamentary elections on October 13, the highest participation since the nation’s first free elections after the Communist Party lost power in 1989. 

The high turnout was mainly the result of an increasingly partisan Polish nation and government, which is now divided between the right-wing government and the left-leaning opposition.

The results of the election would determine whether the right-wing populist Law and Justice Party (PiS), led by Jarosław Kaczyński, would continue to hold its majority in the two chambers of the Polish parliament, the Senate and the Sejm. 

When all the votes were counted, the PiS kept its majority in the Sejm with 41 percent of the popular vote. However, the opposition, comprised mainly of the Civic Coalition Party with 27.2 percent of the vote and the left-wing coalition (The Left) with 12.5 percent, took a narrow lead in the Senate, scoring 51 out of total 100 seats.

Even though this was seen as a victory for opponents of PiS in the Polish government, the now opposition-controlled Senate holds far less power than the Sejm. Therefore, the opposition still has a large obstacle to overcome in curbing the legislative power of PiS. 

Nevertheless, Ben Stanley, a Political Science professor at Warsaw’s SWPS University, suggests that if the opposition parties can “work together and construct a positive narrative, they can convincingly take on politicians who once looked unassailable.”

PiS will now have a far more difficult time passing laws efficiently. According to Adrian Zandberg, leader of the left-wing Razem (Together) party, "Jarosław Kaczyński has a problem, because the Sejm will have a brave opposition that wants to fight.”

Although the night turned out roughly as predicted, many opposition parties were pleasantly surprised with the results. The Left, for example, who failed to win any seats in the 2015 elections, won an astounding 49 in the Sejm. And the Confederation, a far right-wing opposition group, gained 7 seats in that chamber. 

While this parliamentary election was essential in determining how the next four years of Polish politics will play out, all eyes are on the 2020 presidential election, where president Andrzej Duda, a former member of PiS, is up for reelection. Losing the presidency would be a heavy blow to the reigning party that, based on the results of this election, is already beginning to lose its grip of power in the Polish government.