| Lech Kaczynski became President of Poland “Mr Chairman! I report that the task has been completed,” Lech Kaczynski addressed his brother Jaroslaw, the leader of the center-right conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, after learning the first results of exit polls. They testified to Lech Kaczynski's five percent advantage over his rival, the chairman of the liberal Civic Platform (CP) Donald Tusk. The official results of the presidential election confirmed an even larger gap: Kaczynski won 54.04%, Tusk - 45.96%.
The rivals reached the finish line of the second round of the presidential race neck and neck. It was thought that only a few votes would tip the scales of one of the candidates. Moreover, without exception, all preliminary forecasts foreshadowed Tusk’s victory.
What happened? Kaczynski's social program was served in a delicious sauce of populist promises. The program of the political romantic Tusk was based on boring facts and liberal economic calculations. It is already known that the majority of people who voted for the mayor of Warsaw (a complete loser in the capital under his jurisdiction) were residents of small towns and rural areas, mostly poor people and not very well educated. On Tusk’s side were the sympathies of young people, entrepreneurs, residents of big cities and people with a good education. It seemed that the Poles had completely forgotten the school of “shock therapy”, thanks to which the country climbed out of economic failure, and again wanted to become citizens of the guardian state.
The turnout was only 50.99% - every second voter came to vote. This greatly harmed Tusk. Pollsters say his continued lead in the polls has overly reassured his supporters that everything is already decided.
At the same time, there were changes in the sympathies of the electorate itself. Almost 9% of those who supported Tusk in the first round defected to Kaczynski’s camp. Here we have to remember the black PR around the “Wehrmacht volunteer” grandfather Tusk. This scandal unsettled the liberal candidate, but at the same time it also backfired on his opponent’s headquarters.
The opinions of politicians who lost in the first round played a much more important role. Populist and left-wing radical from Self-Defense Andrzej Lepper, who is backed by 15% of voters, announced his support for Kaczynski. Both populists were brought together by their dislike for Leszek Balcerowicz. As if picking up the hackneyed “Self-Defense” slogan “Balcerowicz must go!”, Kaczynski said that if he wins, he does not intend to nominate the father of radical reforms as chairman of the National Bank of Poland for a second term.
The new president, Lech Kaczynski, is a supporter of lustration and decommunization. In the interests of fighting corruption, he wants to create a Truth and Justice Commission. His plans are to change the country's constitution, strengthening the role of the president and the ability to influence the heads of provinces from the center. The result is something similar to the Russian vertical of power being built by the Kremlin.
It is noteworthy that the newly elected president said that he considers Vladimir Putin a pragmatic politician, and therefore is waiting for him to visit Warsaw, which Putin visited only once, while Alexander Kwasniewski visited Moscow six times during his presidency. “I do not agree with Kwasniewski’s policies in everything, but in his desire to improve relations with Russia I am ready to become his follower,” Lech Kaczynski said rather unexpectedly.
For the outgoing president, this election campaign turned into a triple defeat. At first, Kwasniewski bet on Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz, but he himself withdrew from the race under pressure from incriminating evidence. Then he supported the Social Democrat Marek Borowski, who lost in the first round. At the final stage, Kwasniewski said that he was “close to the concept of Tusk’s presidency.”
Nevertheless, Alexander Kwasniewski warmly congratulated his successor. The transfer of power will take place on December 23. But Lech Walesa, who supported Tusk throughout the campaign, perceived his defeat as his own. He said that he did not intend to congratulate Kaczynski - despite the fact that they were associates in the past. Valery MASTEROV, staff correspondent for Moscow News in Warsaw, for Vremya Novostei |
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