Anne Applebaum, journalist and writer, winner of the Pulitzer Prize, said in “Fakty po Faktach” on TVN24 that when the preliminary results of the parliamentary elections were announced, “people from all over the world” called and wrote to her. – The democratic world was waiting and watching Poland to see if yet another country was heading towards autocracy – she added. She assessed that the election result is “a very important step in the right direction for Poland.”
The results of the parliamentary elections were commented on in “Fakty po Faktach” on TVN24 by Anne Applebaum, journalist and writer, winner of the Pulitzer Prize, columnist for “The Atlantic”, author of such books as “Twilight of Democracy”, “Gulag”, “Red Hunger”, “Choice”. . She said that “the result is very important for three reasons.”
– First, the democratic world was waiting and watching Poland to see if yet another country was heading towards autocracy, she said.
She added that when the first survey results appeared, “people from all over the world called and wrote to her.” – From Venezuela, dissidents from Russia, from the United States, from Israel, (…). And everyone was so happy, because it is also an example for them that it is possible to win against this propaganda and such self-critical behavior – she added. She stated that “this is a very important step in the right direction for Poland.”
Applebaum: European leaders were waiting for a Poland with which they could talk
Applebaum also said that the victory of the democratic opposition “is of course important in the European context” because – as she said – “European leaders were waiting for a Poland with which they can talk, with which they can have normal relations.” – (They waited – editor) not only in Germany, but in France, Italy, everywhere – she enumerated.
She also pointed out that the election results are also important for Ukrainians. – Ukrainians have seen in the last few months that this is a government that is ready to sell its support for Ukraine for the benefit of the electorate, or votes, or some kind of popularity.
What determined the election result? “Mobilization, turnout, anger”
Anne Applebaum also talked about what, in her opinion, influenced the electoral decision. She mentioned “mobilization, turnout, people’s anger against the corruption of the authorities, the arrogance of the authorities.” She added that the fact that young people voted also had an effect – “that they understood that their future is important”, and it is the government that has an influence on this future.
She also talked about the “Donald Tusk effect”. She recalled that he decided to return from Brussels, “organized the opposition, ran a campaign, took risks, (…) and it turned out that it was possible.”
Applebaum also pointed to similarities between this election and the one in 1989. She said that the next day there were “the same smiles” on her face. – Well, I guess people didn’t expect that the democratic coalition would win. And it was the same in 1989. She added that the similarity was also the feeling that “we did it, we all voted together because we want change,” said the journalist and writer.
Anne Applebaum on the similarities between the 2023 and 1989 electionsTVN24
Main photo source: TVN24