Warsaw, Poland (AP) – A war next to it Ukraine.Migration pressure at the borders. Russian sabotage through the region. Doubt of the American commitment to the security of Europe.
In Poland Presidential election on Sunday, security is significant. So make questions about the force of the country as a democracy and its place in the European Union. One of the most important tasks of the new president will be to maintain close links with the United States, which is largely considered essential to the survival of a country in an increasingly volatile district.
A crowded field, a probable runoff
Voters of this central European nation of 38 million people will vote to replace the conservative holder Andrzej Duda, whose second and last five -year term ends in August.
With 13 candidatesA decisive victory in the first round is unlikely. Some have appeared inserted infection or extreme, a couple expressing openly pro-Putine or anti-Semitic views. A televised debate this week has dragged on for almost four hours. There are calls to increase the threshold to qualify for the race.
A run on June 1 is widely expected, with surveys pointing to a probable force test between Rafał Trzaskowski, the liberal mayor of Warsaw, and Karol Nawrocki, a conservative historian supported by the law of law and justice, who ruled Poland from 2015 to 2023.
A nation on the front line
Poland’s geography gives election to additional importance. The border of Kaliningrad from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine torn by war – as well as several Western allies – Poland occupies a critical position along the eastern NATO flank and serves as a key logistics center for military aid to Ukraine.
There are growing fears that if Russia prevails in its large -scale invasion of Ukraine, it could target other countries which have freed themselves from the control of Moscow about 35 years ago. In this context, the elections will shape Warsaw’s foreign policy at a moment of increasing constraint on transatlantic unity and European defense.
The two main candidates support continuous American military engagement in Europe. Trzaskowski puts more emphasis on the deepening of links with the European Union, while Nawrocki is more skeptical about Brussels and promotes a nationalist program.
When law and justice held power, he clashed several times with EU institutions on judicial independence, media freedom and migration.
Why the presidency is important
While Poland is a parliamentary democracy, the presidency has a significant influence. The president is commander -in -chief of the armed forces, holds the right of veto, shapes foreign policy and plays a symbolic role in national discourse.
Under Duda, the office has largely advanced the conservative agenda of law and justice. Since the centrist coalition of Prime Minister Donald Tusk came to power at the end of 2023, Duda blocked key reforms aimed at restoring judicial independence and repairing relations with the EU.
“The stakes are enormous for the management coalition and for those concerning the future of Polish democracy,” said Jacek Kucharczyk, president of the Institute of Public Affairs, a Warsaw Reflection Group. “This is a democratic and restoration reform of the rule of law – and this can only occur with the cooperation of the next president.”
The election is also essential for law and justice, noted Kucharczyk: “His future as a dominant political force could depend on the result”.
Two visions for Poland
Trzaskowski and Nawrocki have undertaken to support Ukraine and maintain solid defense ties, but their visions for Poland differ strongly on the role of the EU and national social policy.
Trzaskowski, 52, is a former presidential competitor and a senior figure of the civic platform, the centrist party led by Tusk. He presents himself on a pro-European platform and is committed to defending judicial independence and rebuilding democratic institutions.
Supporters describe it as a modernizer who represents a cosmopolitan and outside Poland. He talks about foreign languages, walked in LGBTQ + parades and uses younger urban voters. The gradual views of Trzaskowski highlight an evolution of the even more conservative civic platform.
Nawrocki, 42, represents how the supporter, law and justice, turns more to the right as support for the hard right increases.
Nawrocki, who is not a member of the Party of Law and Justice, directs the Institute of National Souvenir supported by the State, which is investigating the Nazi crimes and the Communist era. He praised the conservatives for the dismantling of Soviet monuments and the promotion of patriotic education, but he faces criticisms for inexperience and to play on anti-German and other feelings. He was also involved in Some scandals.
Earlier this month, Nawrocki met US President Donald Trump at the White House-a symbolic moment welcomed by law and the media adapted to justice as proof that he would be the best man to maintain the relationship with the United States. Critics considered him an interference by the administration of Trump.
This week, Nawrocki was joined on the campaign campaign by the Romanian nationalist George Simion, which faces a runoff vote for the presidency on Sunday. Simion is considered by criticisms as pro-Russian, which led defense to defense: “Russia is satisfied. Nawrocki and his Romanian pro-Russian counterpart George Simion on the same stage five days before the presidential elections in Poland and Romania. Everything is clear. “
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Video journalist AP Rafał Niedzielski contributed to this report.
