The election campaign has started. The presidential candidates went to Poland. On Friday, the candidate of the Civic Coalition, Rafał Trzaskowski, visited Grabówka and Puńsk in Podlasie, and Adrian Zandberg, supported by Razem, visited Kraków. Szymon Hołownia, candidate of the Third Way, submitted a notification about the creation of a committee at the National Electoral Commission, while Sławomir Mentzen from Konfederacja met with voters in Lubliniec. The spokeswoman for PiS candidate Karol Nawrocki announced that his program convention will take place in mid-February. There are 121 days left until the elections.
After the resolution of the Speaker of the Sejm Szymon Hołownia The election campaign has officially started since Wednesday. Poles will elect a president on May 18. There are 121 days left until the elections.
Hołownia: I am built by the energy
Hołownia, as a Third Way candidate, went to the headquarters of the National Electoral Commission on Friday to submit a notification about the establishment of his election committee. Notice in accordance with the election calendar NEC on the establishment of electoral committees for presidential candidates can be submitted until March 24.
He said he was “inspired by the energy, sympathy, hunger for hope also associated with these elections.”
– Poland needs an independent president today. An independent president, that is, one who will allow Polish democracy to take the next step, said Hołownia during a press conference in front of the National Electoral Commission. – On October 15 last year, Poles said no to the monopoly of one party. They chose coalition, they chose cooperation. Now I hope that on April 18 they will say no to the duopoly in Poland. And this translates from one large party to another large party and leads to a situation in which sooner or later one party has the prime minister, the president and basically the entire country – he added.
– Today we need the government of this coalition and we need a president who will break up this duopoly. Who will break it down in order to build it together with people. To stabilize Poland's situation in this difficult time, said the Third Way candidate.
He said he had no illusions that “this race, so long, must be divided into many measures.” – All those who think that the elections will be decided on Monday survey either Tuesday or Wednesday, they may be miscalculated – he said.
– We know, and it is not any secret knowledge, that people will probably make their final decisions after they return from the May weekend. These last two weeks before the election. There will be many candidates in this campaign. And it's good for democracy that many people will be able to be on the ballot, because then many people will vote for their candidates and democracy will be secured – said Hołownia. He assured that he would continue to fulfill his duties as marshal. He said that his group had already built a team and was slowly assembling the team.
Trzaskowski: the voice of residents should always be the most important
Candidate of the Civic Coalition and mayor of Warsaw Rafał Trzaskowski officially launched his campaign on Thursday. On Friday morning he visited Grabówka (Podlaskie Voivodeship). He talked, among other things, about the situation of local governments.
– I am very glad that this commune was established 17 days ago, because its inhabitants, over 10,000 inhabitants, have been fighting for years for this commune to be established. Unfortunately PIS changed the decision, which was actually already ready, because the Prime Minister's government Ewa Kopacz he prepared such a decision and it was later changed within a few days. PiS did not want to listen to the voice of the residents. And the voice of residents should always be the most important, ladies and gentlemen, and that is why I am very glad that this voice was taken into account – he said.
– This is a symptom of a very serious disease that PiS has always suffered from, namely not listening to the voice of residents and oppressing all local governments – added Trzaskowski.
Zelensky meets with Trzaskowski and reprimands Nawrocki. Candidates try to stand outMaciej Knapik/Fakty TVN
– Everyone thinks that PiS took money only from rich local governments, such as Warsaw, Wrocław, Kraków, but it took money from practically everyone. When I was in Podkarpacie, in Przeworsk, when I was in Hrubieszów, the inhabitants of these cities told me about it. Here, of course, also in Podlasie – said the mayor of Warsaw.
He stated that “the reform of local government financing, which puts money into the hands of all residents, means that virtually every commune in Poland will have more money.” – Residents will be sure that investments will continue and that their local government officials will be able to implement all the demands addressed to them – he said.
He assessed that “the budgets of local governments, poorer local governments, are in a much better situation than they were over a year ago.” – This is amazing because PiS has talked a lot about wanting to fight inequality. But in fact, it is only now that we are seriously fighting against these inequalities. That's why I say clearly that the President of the Republic of Poland should know local governments, should be their friend, should be their spokesman – he added.
Rafał Trzaskowski in Grabówka
“Everything we do must simply pay off”
In the evening, Trzaskowski met with the inhabitants of Puńsk (Podlaskie Voivodeship). – The stakes are the highest, everything is at stake – he said about the upcoming elections, which he called “in a sense, the second round of the 2023 elections.”
He emphasized that he was a candidate from the local government who would be a spokesman for all towns and villages. As in Grabówka, he emphasized that every city in Poland must have equal opportunities, and the president should listen to the voice of the residents.
– When it comes to benefits such as 800 plus for Ukrainians, they should be due if Ukrainians live in Poland and pay taxes in Poland – said the KO candidate.
Trzaskowski announced that he intends to introduce a fundamental principle in Polish foreign policy – as he put it – common sense, that “everything we do must simply pay off.” – The country's interest is an interest that benefits all citizens – he said.
In this context – emphasizing the importance Ukraine as a country that is currently fighting against Russia and in this sense it strengthens Poland's security – he emphasized that Ukraine's possible future membership in the European Union must also be profitable for Poland.
– For us, the most important thing is that everyone who comes to us and wants to count on support should strengthen the economy. And that is why I propose a fundamental change, namely when it comes to benefits such as 800 plus for Ukrainians, they should be due if Ukrainians work, if they live in Poland and if they pay taxes in Poland – said Trzaskowski, whose words were accepted applause. – This is a common sense change and that is why I appeal to the government to work on changing the law so that this type of demand can be taken into account – he added.
KO's presidential candidate explained that Poland cannot make the mistake that other Western countries, such as Germany or Sweden, once made, that – as he said – “it was simply worth coming there just for social benefits.” He also pointed out that currently the vast majority of Ukrainians work in Poland. – The vast majority of them contribute to the growth of our economy – he emphasized.
Rafał Trzaskowski in PuńskTVN24
Zandberg: we still want change
In the morning, Adrian Zandberg, the candidate of the Razem party, met with voters in Krakow. At a press conference, he stated, among other things, that “for a year now we have seen that this government has failed millions of people who, when going to the polls, counted on real change.” – They counted on it when they voted for the Sejm; they counted on it when they voted for the Senate, he added.
– Ladies and gentlemen, it's high time to send a clear signal to those in power that we still want change. That we are not satisfied with the fact that the men from PiS were replaced by men from the Platform and now, just as those, like Stonka, owned State Treasury companies, now those like Stonka own State Treasury companies – he said.
– We are not satisfied with the fact that instead of the extreme conservatism of Law and Justice, we have people in power for whom even health classes are something they cannot agree to, because their nineteenth-century views do not allow it. We can send them a signal that we do not accept that a year has passed and key issues regarding women's rights have not been moved forward, have not been resolved in any way, he continued. He explained that “this occasion will be the presidential elections.”
During a short press conference, he also presented Razem's candidate for the local Senate by-elections – Ewa Sładek.
Adrian Zandberg in KrakowTVN24
Mentzen: I'm not going to pretend to be someone I'm not
On Friday, Sławomir Mentzen, represented by the Confederation, appeared at meetings with voters in the Silesian Voivodeship. Mentzen registered his electoral committee at the National Electoral Commission on Thursday.
The politician spoke before voters in Lubliniec. He stressed that he would focus on authenticity in the campaign. – I'm not going to pretend to be someone I'm not. I will continue to be the same Mentzen I was, unlike my competitors, he assured.
The Confederation's presidential candidate criticized the government. – They cannot conduct foreign policy in the interests of Poles – he said. In his opinion, this policy should be “assertive” and “transactional”. – Tusk said that he would use the presidency (of the Council of the European Union – ed.) to persuade Europe to unconditionally admit Ukraine to the EU – he continued. He also stated that “Ukraine's accession to the EU is a problem for our agriculture” and that “very high demands” should be placed on it.
Sławomir Mentzen in LubliniecTVN24
Nawrocki's programming convention in mid-February
Program convention of the PiS candidate Karol Nawrocki will probably take place in mid-February, said his spokeswoman Emilia Wierzbicki. – Key program points will be proposed and we will show what the program looks like – she said.
She added that an important topic will include, among others: the issue of inflation and prices. She assured that Nawrocki's election campaign “is going very well” and the election meetings are very popular. As part of the campaign, Nawrocki is to visit every district in the country – this weekend he will meet with voters in the province. West Pomeranian Voivodeship.
Main photo source: Łukasz Gągulski, Tomasz Gzell, Artur Reszko, Tomasz Wojtasik, Przemysław Piątkowski/PAP