Thanks for posting, but would you give us some more info, as Poland is one of the countries we really respect these days. In particular, are they really split down the middle like those results seem to point to, or did conservatives split their vote earlier and then acted like a bunch of spoiled brat FReepers and sat out the final election like 3 year olds that don’t get their way?
If Poland is really split down the middle, it will be tough for the conservatives there to hold their ground much longer, given all the tools of the Left.
Hi, Cronos presented the candidates in few posts above.
Actually, all but one candidates are somewhat conservative, be it socially or economically. Really left wing candidate got 2% of votes. Left wing parties are outside of parlimemt for few years now. This presidential election was a fight between a more pro-US, more socially conservative, bigger welfare candidate and a pro-EU, more free market (although this is debatable imho) candidate. Political situation is more about how conservatives and centrists organize the political scene. Left is marginal.
Poland is NOT torn between left and right. The LEFT-left, communists etc. get 2% of the vote.
PiS which is Duda is socially conservative but doesn't DO much for it, just says a lot (think RINO), economically left (big government, lots of welfare) - that's a win with the electorate. They have 48% to 52% of the electorate
PO is socially liberalISH but doesn't DO much for it, just talks (think DINO), economically rightISH (but they won't roll back the welfare state). They were big until PiS came up with 500zł for each kid. Plus they had a charismatic leader in Donald Tusk. Trzaskowski is charismatic, but far less capable than Tusk. These guys get 25% to 30% of the vote
PSL is the farmers party and has a fixed vote bank of 2.5% approximately
The new and upcoming "party" is actually a coalition of various "right" parties - it is called "Konfederacja" or confederation. It's been in place since 2016 and the failure of a guy called Kukiz to actually make any change.
Konfederacja has been rising from 5% in the previous elections in 2019 to 7% now with Bosak. It is conservative and fiscally open with a smaller welfare state. This is the classic "rightist" party
The LEFT - ex-commies were represented by Biedron, a homosexual mayor of Ślupsk (the only homosexual mayor in Poland) - and they got 2% of the vote. They have been falling in vote levels steadily.
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So this vote was between
1. a socially rightISH and fiscally leftISH candidate and
2. a socially leftISH and fiscally rightiSH candidate
A lot of people who are RIGHT are not comfortable with PiS -- that includes me, they are fiscally irresponsible, big government and corrupted (the other party PO is also equally corrupt)