Conservative Karol Nawrocki wins Poland's presidential election
[June 02, 2025]
By VANESSA GERA
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Conservative Karol Nawrocki won Poland’s weekend
presidential runoff election, according to the final vote count on
Monday. Nawrocki won 50.89% of votes in a very tight race against
liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, who received 49.11%.
The race had Poland on edge since a first round of voting two weeks
earlier, revealing deep divisions in the country along the eastern flank
of NATO and the European Union.
An early exit poll released Sunday evening suggested Trzaskowski was
headed to victory before updated polling began to reverse the picture a
couple of hours later.
The outcome suggests that Poland can be expected to take a more populist
and nationalist path under its new president, who was backed by U.S.
President Donald Trump.
Trzaskowski conceded defeat and congratulated Nawrocki on Monday,
thanking all those who voted for him. “I fought for us to build a
strong, safe, honest, and empathetic Poland together,” he wrote on X.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to convince the majority of citizens of my
vision for Poland. I’m sorry we didn’t win together.”
Congratulations from different corners
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was among the leaders offering
their congratulations to Nawrocki on Monday morning, an acknowledgment
of Poland's key role as a neighbor, ally and hub for Western weapons
sent to Kyiv.
He called Poland “a pillar of regional and European security,” and said,
“by reinforcing one another on our continent, we give greater strength
to Europe in global competition and bring the achievement of real and
lasting peace closer. I look forward to continued fruitful cooperation
with Poland and with President Nawrocki personally.”
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who shares Nawrocki's national
conservative worldview, hailed Nawrocki's “fantastic victory.”
Meanwhile, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen offered
measured congratulations, emphasizing continued EU-Poland collaboration
rooted in shared democratic values: “We are all stronger together in our
community of peace, democracy, and values. So let us work to ensure the
security and prosperity of our common home.”
The role of a president in Poland
Most day-to-day power in the Polish political system rests with a prime
minister chosen by the parliament. However, the president's role is not
merely ceremonial. The office holds the power to influence foreign
policy and to veto legislation.
Nawrocki will succeed Andrzej Duda, a conservative whose second and
final term ends on Aug. 6.
Under the Polish constitution, the president serves a five-year term and
may be re-elected once.
A headache for Tusk
Prime Minister Donald Tusk came to power in late 2023 with a coalition
government that spans a broad ideological divide — so broad that it
hasn't been able to fulfill certain of his electoral promises, such as
loosening the restrictive abortion law or passing a civil partnership
law for same-sex couples.
But Duda's veto power has been another obstacle. It has prevented Tusk
from fulfilling promises to reverse laws that politicized the court
system in a way that the EU found to be undemocratic.
Now it appears Tusk will have no way to fulfill those promises, which he
made both to voters and the EU.
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Presidential candidate Karol Nawrocki, a conservative historian
backed by the right-wing Law and Justice party addresses supporters
at his headquarters after the presidential election runoff in
Warsaw, Poland, Sunday, June 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski)
Some observers in Poland have said the unfulfilled promises could
make it more difficult for Tusk to continue his term until the next
parliamentary election scheduled for late 2027, particularly if Law
and Justice dangles the prospect of future cooperation with
conservatives in his coalition.
A former boxer, historian and political novice
Nawrocki, a 42-year-old amateur boxer and historian, was tapped by
the Law and Justice party as part of its push for a fresh start.
The party governed Poland from 2015 to 2023, when it lost power to
Tusk's centrist coalition. Some political observers predicted it
would never make a comeback, and Nawrocki was chosen as a new face
who would not be burned by the scandals of the party's eight years
of rule.
The election outcome vindicated party leader Jarosław Kaczyński's
strategy but on Monday many were also blaming the increasingly
unpopular Tusk and Trzaskowski.
Nawrocki has most recently been the head of the Institute of
National Remembrance, which embraces nationalist historical
narratives. He led efforts to topple monuments to the Soviet Red
Army in Poland, and Russia responded by putting him on a wanted
list, according to Polish media reports.
Nawrocki’s supporters describe him as the embodiment of traditional,
patriotic values. Those who oppose secular trends, including LGBTQ+
visibility, have embraced him, viewing him as a reflection of the
values they grew up with.
Nawrocki’s candidacy was clouded by allegations of past connections
to criminal figures and his participation in a violent street brawl.
He denies the criminal links but was unapologetic about the street
fight, saying he had taken part in various “noble” fights in his
life. The revelations did not seem to hurt his support among
right-wing voters, many of whom see the allegations as politically
motivated.
The Trump factor
Trump made it clear he wanted Nawrocki as Poland's president.
He welcomed Nawrocki to the White House a month ago. And last week
the conservative group CPAC held its first meeting in Poland to give
Nawrocki a boost. Kristi Noem, the U.S. Homeland Security Secretary
and a prominent Trump ally, strongly praised Nawrocki and urged
Poles to vote for him.
The U.S. has about 10,000 troops stationed in Poland and Noem
suggested that military ties could deepen with Nawrocki as
president.
A common refrain from Nawrocki's supporters is that he will restore
“normality,” as they believe Trump has done. U.S. flags often
appeared at Nawrocki's rallies, and his supporters believed that he
offered a better chance for good ties with the Trump administration.
Nawrocki has also echoed some of Trump's language on Ukraine. He
promises to continue Poland's support for Ukraine but has been
critical of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, accusing him of taking
advantage of allies. He has accused Ukrainian refugees of taking
advantage of Polish generosity, vowing to prioritize Poles for
social services such as health care and schooling.
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