On Monday 2 June, the leaders of the European institutions congratulated the winner of the Polish presidential elections, Karol Nawrocki, from the conservative Law and Justice party (PiS), who succeeded Andrzej Duda, also from PiS.
The day before, the new president had narrowly won the election, with 50.89% of the vote, against 49.11% for the candidate backed by Donald Tusk, the current mayor of Warsaw, Rafał Trzaskowski. Mr Trzaskowski, a former MEP, also lost in 2020 to Mr Duda.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said she was “confident that the EU will continue its very good cooperation with Poland. 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”, she posted on X.
Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament, also sent her congratulations to the new Polish President. “Let’s keep making the European project a success for everyone”, she said.
“Poland is and has always been at the heart of Europe. I count on it to remain a strong, active, and decisive force in shaping a more secure and prosperous Union”, the President of the European Council, António Costa also declared.
Supported by Donald Trump and the ‘MAGA’ movement, the president-elect, described as a nationalist conservative, takes a critical line on the EU and rejects any form of centralised management.
While he remains committed to military support for Ukraine, Mr Nawrocki is opposed to Ukraine joining NATO. He could also complicate, as his predecessor already did, the reforms carried out by the Tusk government on the rule of law as well as on social reforms, such as the easing of legislation on abortion.
Through its spokeswoman Paula Pinho, the Commission has in any case expressed its conviction “that the reforms undertaken by the Polish government will be pursued”.
In 2017, two years after the PiS came to power, an ‘Article 7’ procedure on respect for the rule of law was opened against Poland, due to judicial reforms deemed problematic.
After Donald Tusk’s return to power at the end of 2023, promises of changes to these reforms, in line with European case law, convinced the Commission to release European funds frozen under the ‘rule of law’ conditionality regulation.
In 2024, the Commission put an end to the ‘Article 7’ procedure and began the ‘unfreezing’ of €137 billion of funds from the Polish post-Covid-19 recovery plan (see EUROPE 13419/20, 13361/1).
But Mr Duda blocked some of the promised reforms, and his successor has said he wants to maintain this course. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)