(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The opposition Civic Platform (PO) heads to this Sunday’s legislative election in Poland as the most popular party, according to a poll by GfK Polonia published in Rzeczpospolita. 34 per cent of respondents would vote for the centre-right PO, up eight points since late September.
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) – The opposition Civic Platform (PO) heads to this Sunday’s legislative election in Poland as the most popular party, according to a poll by GfK Polonia published in Rzeczpospolita. 34 per cent of respondents would vote for the centre-right PO, up eight points since late September.
The governing conservative Law and Justice Party (PiS) is second with 26 per cent, followed by the Left and Democracy (LiD) coalition with 12 per cent, and the Peasant’s Party (PSL) with eight per cent. Under the country’s proportional representation system, a party must receive at least five per cent of the vote—and a coalition at least eight per cent—to elect members.
In September 2005, voters in Poland renewed their legislative branch. Final results gave the PiS 26.9 per cent of the vote and 155 lawmakers in the 460-seat lower house. In October, economic expert Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz took over as prime minister and Lech Kaczynski won the presidential election. The coalition government included the PiS, the Self-Defence of the Polish Republic (SRP) and the League of Polish Families (LPR). In July 2006, following Marcinkiewicz’s resignation, Polish president Lech Kaczynski appointed PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski—his twin brother—as the country’s new prime minister.
In July 2007, Lech Kaczynski dismissed agricultural minister and SRP leader Andrzej Lepper over a bribery scandal. The coalition government officially collapsed on Sept. 7, when Poland’s lower house was dissolved after a 377-54 vote, in a motion called by the LiD. An early legislative ballot is scheduled for Oct. 21.
Yesterday, Tusk discussed a possible post-election alliance, saying, "I believe in a government coalition between PO and PSL. But we do need a greater majority. For instance in order to override any presidential veto."
Polling Data
What party would you support in the next election?
|
Oct. 18 |
Sept. 23 |
Sept. 9 |
|
|
Civic Platform (PO) |
34% |
26% |
31% |
|
Law and Justice Party (PiS) |
26% |
24% |
29% |
|
Left and Democracy (LiD) |
12% |
10% |
8% |
|
Peasant’s Party (PSL) |
8% |
6% |
3% |
Source: GfK Polonia / Rzeczpospolita
Methodology: Interviews to 1,000 Polish adults, conducted on Oct. 17, 2007. Margin of error is 3 per cent.
