Prepared For

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Prepared For A look ahead at the Polish political & economical landscape prepared for Warszawa, October 20, 2020 Daily Tailored High-profile analysis research events Thematic Stakeholder Boardroom reports mapping presentations Quantitative Dossiers Workshops research Polish politics after electoral marathon Wojciech Szacki Head of Political Desk Polityka Insight Polish politics Polish society Polish economy Elections: Seemingly peaceful three years European Parliament Cabinet election reshuffle 5.2019 10.2020 10-11.2018 10.2019 6-7.2020 2023 Local elections Parliamentary Presidential Parliamentary elections election and Local elections Cabinet reshuffle: Newcomers, returns and dismissals Polish politics Polish society Polish economy New ministers: Kaczyński returns to the Cabinet Jarosław Kaczyński Jarosław Gowin Deputy PM, Head of Deputy PM, Minister of the Committee of the Interior, Development, Labour and Justice and National Defence Technology Przemysław Czarnek Grzegorz Puda Minister of Education Minister of Agriculture and Science Michał Cieślak Michał Wójcik Minister, member Minister, member of of the cabinet council the cabinet council New ministries: Fewer but bigger institutions Piotr Gliński Tadeusz Kościński Minister of Culture, Minister of Finances National Heritage and Sport and Funds Marlena Maląg Michał Kurtyka Minister of Family Minister of Climate and Social Policy and Environment - Labour Dismissed ministers: Farewells and changes of position Jadwiga Emilewicz Jan Krzysztof Wojciech Murdzek Deputy PM, Minister of Ardanowski Minister of Science and Development Minister of Agriculture Higher Education Michał Woś Marek Gróbarczyk Dariusz Piontkowski Minister of Minister of Maritime Minister of National Environment Economy and Inland Education Navigation Marek Zagórski Danuta Dmowska- Minister of Digital Affairs -Andrzejuk Minister of Sport New Cabinet: Logic of the reconstruction Reducing the number of ministries Creation of a more ‘flexible’ government Diminishing the influence of PiS’ coalition partners Refreshment of the ruling camp’s image Dismissals of poorly rated ministers Parliament: Sejm ruled by the United Right, Senate by the opposition SEJM SENATE THE LOWER CHAMBER THE UPPER CHAMBER KO: United Right: KO: 43 235 134 PSL: United Right: The Left: 3 48 48 The Left: Polska 100 2 2050: 1 Independent: 460 PSL: 4 30 Konfederacja: MN: 11 1 United Right: The ruling coalition PiS Solidarna Polska Porozumienie 198 members of the Sejm 19 members of the Sejm 18 members of the Sejm 44 senators 2 senators 2 senators Leader: Leader: Leader: Jarosław Kaczyński Zbigniew Ziobro Jarosław Gowin Scattered opposition: Main forces Civic Coalition (KO) The Left PSL-Polish Coalition 134 members of the Sejm 48 members of the Sejm 30 members of the Sejm 44 senators 2 senators 3 senators Comprised of four parties Coalition of three parties Comprised of three parties Main leader: Borys Budka Main leader: Włodzimierz Czarzasty Main leader: Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz Possible leader: Rafał Trzaskowski Konfederacja Polska 2050 11 members of the Sejm 1 member of the Sejm Coalition of three parties A new movement, gathered behind Szymon Hołownia Multiple leaders (includ. Krzysztof Bosak) Polls: Changes in parties’ support 50 Political parties PiS 45 44 Koalicja Obywatelska 40 Lewica 35 32 PSL-Koalicja Polska 30 28 Konfederacja 25 Polska 2050 20 *Dotted line represents a variant with Polska 15 2050 running 12 11 10 9 8 66 5 5 February March April May June July August/September What’s next: Icebergs ahead of Kaczyński’s ship Covid-19 situation Losing majority Mateusz Morawiecki and its implications due to a backbenchers’ and Zbigniew Ziobro’s rebel neverending war No elections until 2023: What can we expect Flattening of the structure of the judiciary Further weakening the position of local governments Tightening control over NGOs Decentralization of the media Changes in the electoral law and gerrymandering Changes in the administrative division of Poland Polish politics Q&A Polish politics Polish society Polish economy Economic outlook Adam Czerniak, PhD Chief Economist, Director for Research Polityka Insight Polish politics Polish society Polish economy Pandemic impact on the Polish economy: What do we know CHANGES IN VALUE ADDED BY ECONOMIC SECTOR IN H1’2020 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE TOTAL % CHANGE IN GDP 10 (Q2’2020 VS Q4’2019 S.A.) 0 0 -10 Industry -2 Construction Public sector -20 Real estate activities -4 Wholesale -30 and retail trade -40 Agriculture, forestryFinancial and and fishing insurance activities Information and communication -6 Logistics (transport, Professional and support activities storage and distribution) -50 -8 Accommodation Industry and food service activities -60 Wholesale and retail trade -10 Recreational services -70 Rest of the economy Logistics (transport, storage, distribution) -80 Recreational services -90 Source: Eurostat, GUS, own calculations. Accommodation and food service activities Pandemic impact on the Polish economy: What to expect PI forecast % 15 10 GDP growth Consumption 5 Public spending 0 Investment Net export -5 Changes in inventories -10 Source: GUS, own calculations. -15 2018 2019 2020 2021 Prices: Inflation remains stubbornly high PI forecast 5 4 3 CPI (%) Core (pp.) 2 Food (pp.) 1 Fuels & energy (pp.) 0 -1 Source: GUS, -2 own calculations. 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 Pandemic impact on the labour market: What do we know In Q2’2020 employment fell by 151k (-0.9% q-o-q) Sectors with biggest drops were: recreational real estate accommodation services activities and food services -26k or -11.2% -13k or -9.0% -30k or -8.1% Source: Eurostat. Pandemic impact on the labour market: What do we know Who have lost their jobs? young people temporary foreigners people in age 15-24 employed a second job 117k or -10.8% + 106k or -4.1% + 46k or -35.3% + 19k or -2.4% out of which 42k were older than 24 years (-2.1%) Source: Eurostat. Almost all of them became economically inactive economic activity dropped by 153k in Q2’2020 Pandemic impact on the labour market: What do we know As a result unemployment levels remained stable In comparison to and February registered December 2019 2020 unemployment is equal to 5.2% 5.5% 6.1% Source: GUS. Pandemic impact on the labour market: The worst is yet to come Firms are now making business projections for 2021 and the outlook is grim Sectors most prone do lay-offs: export-depended manufacturing; construction; professional activities; accommodation and food services. The government’s anti-crisis shield will expire in 2021 Menace of a second lockdown Fiscal policy: Strongly myopic The government introduced a wide-spectrum stimulus package worth over PLN 200bn (>10% GDP) including: wage subsidies; credit guarantees; partly-refundable credits; benefits for parents, self-employed and employers. The 2020 budget deficit had to be increased toPLN 109bn Fiscal policy: Strongly myopic Polityka Insight’s general government deficit forecast: 9.8% in 2020 8-9% in 2021 The debt level will surpass 55% of GDP and is likely to breach the 60% GDP threshold Economic outlook Q&A Polish politics Polish society Polish economy If you would like to order similar presentation, please contact: Maciej Michalik Research Projects Manager Polityka Insight [email protected].
Recommended publications
  • Opposition Behaviour Against the Third Wave of Autocratisation: Hungary and Poland Compared
    European Political Science https://doi.org/10.1057/s41304-021-00325-x SYMPOSIUM Opposition behaviour against the third wave of autocratisation: Hungary and Poland compared Gabriella Ilonszki1 · Agnieszka Dudzińska2 Accepted: 4 February 2021 © The Author(s) 2021 Abstract Hungary and Poland are often placed in the same analytical framework from the period of their ‘negotiated revolutions’ to their autocratic turn. This article aims to look behind this apparent similarity focusing on opposition behaviour. The analysis demonstrates that the executive–parliament power structure, the vigour of the extra- parliamentary actors, and the opposition party frame have the strongest infuence on opposition behaviour, and they provide the sources of diference between the two country cases: in Hungary an enforced power game and in Poland a political game constrain opposition opportunities and opposition strategic behaviour. Keywords Autocratisation · Extra-parliamentary arena · Hungary · Opposition · Parliament · Party system · Poland Introduction What can this study add? Hungary and Poland are often packed together in political analyses on the grounds that they constitute cases of democratic decline. The parties in governments appear infamous on the international, particularly on the EU, scene. Fidesz1 in Hungary has been on the verge of leaving or being forced to leave the People’s Party group due to repeated abuses of democratic norms, and PiS in Poland2 is a member of 1 The party’s full name now reads Fidesz—Hungarian Civic Alliance. 2 Abbreviation of Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (Law and Justice). * Gabriella Ilonszki [email protected] Agnieszka Dudzińska [email protected] 1 Department of Political Science, Corvinus University of Budapest, 8 Fővám tér, Budapest 1093, Hungary 2 Institute of Sociology, University of Warsaw, Krakowskie Przedmieście 26/28, 00-927 Warsaw, Poland Vol.:(0123456789) G.
    [Show full text]
  • Justice Under Pressure – Repressions As a Means of Attempting to Take Control Over the Judiciary and the Prosecution in Poland
    IUSTITIA RAPORTY Justice under pressure – repressions as a means of attempting to take control over the judiciary and the prosecution in Poland. Years 2015–2019 Edited by Jakub Kościerzyński Prepared by: sędzia SA Michał Bober sędzia SO Piotr Gąciarek sędzia SR Joanna Jurkiewicz sędzia SR Jakub Kościerzyński prokurator PR Mariusz Krasoń sędzia SR Dorota Zabłudowska Th e report was drawn up by judges from the Polish Judges’ Association “Iustitia” and by a prosecutor from the “Lex Super Omnia” Association of Prosecutors. “Iustitia” is the largest association of judges in Poland. It is fully independent, apolitical and self-governing, with over 3500 members, which is over 1/3 of the total number of judges. Our main mission is to defend the principles of a democratic state of law: freedom, rights and civil liberties, which are the cornerstone of democratic Poland. We are active in many fi elds not only throughout Poland but also in the international arena as a member of international associations of judges (IAJ, EAJ, MEDEL). “Lex Super Omnia” is fully independent, apolitical and self-governing. It brings together more than 200 prosecutors. Th e main goal of the association is to strive for establishing an independent prosecution, the position of which is defi ned in the Polish Constitution. ISBN: 978-83-920641-8-3 Spis treści Introduction ................................................................................................................. 7 Part I. Judges ............................................................................................................... 9 Chapter I. List of judges against whom the disciplinary prosecutor of common courts, judge Piotr Schab and his deputies, judges: Michał Lasota and Przemysław W. Radzik, have launched investigations or initiated disciplinary proceedings in connection with judicial and extrajudicial activities.
    [Show full text]
  • POLAND: Duda's Victory Paves the Way for Pis Rule Until 2023
    Europe | July 13, 2020 POLAND: Duda’s victory paves the way for PiS rule until 2023 According to preliminary data from the National Electoral Commission (PKW), incumbent President Andrzej Duda – supported by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party – narrowly won the second round of the presidential election held on 12 July. With nearly all ballots counted, Duda secured 51.2% of votes, leaving his opponent Rafal Trzaskowski (Civic Platform, PO) behind with 48.8%. The fiercely contested presidential race attracted a nearly record turnout of 68.1%. The PKW is expected to announce the official results within few days. Trzaskowski has not accepted defeat yet and could still challenge the result in courts, although this appears unlikely. An extremely divisive electoral campaign and a tight result reveal the deep polarization of Poland’s society. Exit polls show that Duda was predominantly supported by farmers, senior citizens, blue-collar workers, and the unemployed based in smaller towns and villages in the eastern parts of the country. Meanwhile, Trzaskowski performed well among students and entrepreneurs, as well as highly-qualified professionals. He is also much more popular in large cities and the western parts of the country. Duda’s re-election is a major win for the ruling PiS, which is now relatively well-positioned to continue carrying out its policy agenda until the parliamentary election in the autumn of 2023. In terms of the government’s policy priorities going forward, justice minister Zbigniew Ziobro (United Poland) has highlighted that it would further reform state institutions – including the judiciary – and continue implementing its generous social policies.
    [Show full text]
  • Poland-Report.Pdf
    © Faith Matters, 2017 London, United Kingdom All rights reserved Material from this publication may be reproduced for teaching or other non-commercial purposes. No part of it may be reproduced in any form for commercial purposes without the prior express permission of the copyright holder. For further information please contact Faith Matters +44 (0) 207 935 5573 [email protected] Twitter: @FaithMattersUK Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FaithMattersUK Published 04 December 2017 Lead researcher: Steve Rose Get involved and support our work at www.faith-matters.org Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 2 Review of Existing Literature ............................................................................................. 3 The Tatar Muslims of Poland............................................................................................. 7 The Politicisation of Catholicism ...................................................................................... 11 Catholicism & Ethnonationalism under Communism ....................................................... 14 Notable anti-Muslim activists in Poland and Britain ......................................................... 18 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 26 Introduction The size of the nationalist march in Warsaw on 11 November 20171 brought renewed interest in far-right
    [Show full text]
  • DOSSIER Serwisy Analityczne
    Co zmieni rząd Morawieckiego? DOSSIER Serwisy analityczne. Dowiedz się więcej przed innymi. PI Finance PI Energy Jedyny w Polsce serwis analityczny Codzienny serwis Codzienny serwis dla profesjonalistów sektora dla profesjonalistów sektora dla liderów biznesu, polityki finansowego oraz doradców energetycznego oraz doradców i dyplomacji. i prawników obsługujących i prawników obsługujących branżę. branżę. ZAMÓW DOSTĘP PRÓBNY ZAMÓW DOSTĘP PRÓBNY ZAMÓW DOSTĘP PRÓBNY Zapraszamy do kontaktu: Dagmara Bochyńska [email protected] Zapraszamy do kontaktu: Dagmara Bochyńska [email protected] manager ds. sprzedaży +48 691 916 986 manager ds. sprzedaży +48 691 916 986 STRATEGIA Rekonstrukcja ma pchnąć PiS ku centrum Jarosław Kaczyński poprzez rekonstrukcję zaczął przygotowania do wyborów parlamentarnych. Celem jest uzyskanie przez PiS większości konstytucyjnej. PiS zrzuca balast i idzie po centrum. Rekonstrukcja na szczeblu ministrów domyka prze- Wojciech Szacki budowę rządu, którą zapoczątkowała nominacja Mateusza Morawieckiego. Wspólnym starszy analityk ds. politycznych mianownikiem większości nominacji jest dążenie do demobilizacji opozycji i próba zdoby- cia wyborców o umiarkowanych poglądach, niezdecydowanych i słabiej zorientowanych w polityce. Dlatego Jarosław Kaczyński pozbył się z rządu ministrów będących największym obciążeniem politycznym i wizerunkowym: Antoniego Macierewicza, Jana Szyszki, Witolda Waszczykowskiego i Konstantego Radziwiłła. To oni byli najłatwiejszym celem dla opozycji. Ich następcy - poza MinObr
    [Show full text]
  • 11 Marca 2016 R
    Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej Kadencja VIII Sprawozdanie Stenograficzne z 13. posiedzenia Sejmu Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej w dniu 11 marca 2016 r. (trzeci dzień obrad) Warszawa 2016 SPIS TREŚCI 13. posiedzenie Sejmu (Obrady w dniu 11 marca 2016 r.) Wznowienie posiedzenia Poseł Sprawozdawca Wiesław Janczyk. 204 Komunikaty Głosowanie Sekretarz Poseł Daniel Milewski . 201 Marszałek. 205 Zmiana porządku dziennego Punkt 9. porządku dziennego: Sprawozda- Marszałek. 201 nie Komisji Finansów Publicznych oraz Punkt 7. porządku dziennego: Sprawozda- Komisji Spraw Zagranicznych nie Komisji Kultury i Środków Przeka- o rządowym projekcie ustawy o ratyfi- zu o poselskim projekcie uchwały kacji Umowy o utworzeniu Azjatyckie- w sprawie uczczenia pamięci Jam go Banku Inwestycji Infrastruktural- Saheba Digvijay Sinhji (cd.) nych, sporządzonej w Pekinie dnia Głosowanie 29 czerwca 2015 r. (cd.) Marszałek. 201 Głosowanie Sprawy formalne Marszałek. 205 Poseł Krzysztof Brejza. 201 Punkt 13. porządku dziennego: Sprawo- Poseł Jerzy Meysztowicz . 202 zdanie Komisji Nadzwyczajnej o rządo- Punkt 6. porządku dziennego: Sprawo- wym projekcie ustawy o zmianie ustawy zdanie Komisji Kultury i Środków Kodeks postępowania karnego oraz Przekazu o poselskim projekcie niektórych innych ustaw (cd.) uchwały w sprawie uczczenia setnej Poseł Sprawozdawca Andrzej Matusiewicz. .205 rocznicy urodzin Marii Mireckiej-Loryś Głosowanie – niezłomnej bohaterki niepodległego Marszałek. 206 państwa polskiego (cd.) Poseł Mirosław Pampuch . 206 Poseł Robert Winnicki . 202 Poseł Arkadiusz Myrcha . 206 Marszałek. 203 Minister Sprawiedliwości Prokurator Generalny Punkt 3. porządku dziennego: Sprawozda- Zbigniew Ziobro. .206 nie Komisji Rolnictwa i Rozwoju Wsi Poseł Arkadiusz Myrcha . 207 o rządowym projekcie ustawy o zmia- Poseł Witold Zembaczyński. 207 nie ustawy o systemie identyfikacji Minister Sprawiedliwości Prokurator Generalny i rejestracji zwierząt (cd.) Zbigniew Ziobro. .208 Głosowanie Poseł Zbigniew Gryglas .
    [Show full text]
  • Coalition Formation and the Regime Divide in Central Europe
    Program on Central & Eastern Europe Working Paper Series #52, j\Tovember 1999 Coalition Formation and the Regime Divide in Central Europe Anna Grzymala-Busse· Weatherhead Center for International Affairs Harvard University Cambridge, lvlA 02138 Abstract The study examines the formation of coalitions in East Central Europe after the democratic transi­ tions of 1989. Existing explanations of coalition formations, which focus on either office-seeking and minimum wmning considerations, or on policy-seeking and spatial ideological convergence. However, they fail to account for the coalition patterns in the new democracies of East Central Europe. Instead, these parties' flrst goal is to develop clear and consistent reputations. To that end, they will form coalitions exclusively within the two camps of the regime divide: that is, amongst par­ ties stemming from the former communist parties, and those with roots in the former opposition to the communist regimes. The two corollaries are that defectors are punished at unusually high rates, and the communist party successors seek, rather than are sought for, coalitions. This model explains 85% of the coalitions that formed in the region after 1989. The study then examines the communist successor parties, and how their efforts illustrate these dynamics . • I would like to thank Grzegorz Ekiert, Gary King, Kenneth Shepsle, Michael Tomz, and the participants ofthe Faculty Workshop at Yale University for their helpful comments. 2 I. Introduction The patterns of coalition fonnation in East Central Europe are as diverse as they are puzzling. Since the ability to fonn stable governing coalitions is a basic precondition of effective democratic governance in multi-party parliamentary systems, several explanations have emerged of how political parties fonn such coalitions.
    [Show full text]
  • Komunikatzbadań NR 111/2017
    KOMUNIKATzBADAŃ NR 111/2017 ISSN 2353-5822 Zaufanie do polityków u progu nowego sezonu politycznego Przedruk i rozpowszechnianie tej publikacji w całości dozwolone wyłącznie za zgodą CBOS. Wykorzystanie fragmentów oraz danych empirycznych wymaga podania źródła Warszawa, wrzesień 2017 Fundacja Centrum Badania Opinii Społecznej ul. Świętojerska 5/7, 00-236 Warszawa e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected] http://www.cbos.pl (48 22) 629 35 69 ZAUFANIE DO POLITYKÓW U PROGU NOWEGO SEZONU POLITYCZNEGO % Andrzej Duda 71 9 18 1 Beata Szydło 56 11 31 1 Paweł Kukiz 51 20 20 3 6 Mateusz Morawiecki 43 15 17 4 21 Zbigniewa Ziobro 42 14 40 3 2 Elżbieta Rafalska 37 12 16 3 32 Mariusz Błaszczak 37 15 31 3 15 Jarosław Kaczyński 37 11 50 2 Jarosław Gowin 34 23 25 4 14 Witold Waszczykowski 29 14 29 3 25 Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz 28 18 13 4 36 Antoni Macierewicz 28 11 55 3 3 Patryk Jaki 27 13 22 3 36 Anna Zalewska 26 13 25 4 33 Piotr Gliński 25 17 18 5 35 Marek Kuchciński 25 15 25 4 32 Ryszard Petru 23 18 47 3 10 Grzegorz Schetyna 23 19 51 3 5 Stanisław Karczewski 22 14 15 4 46 Borys Budka 21 14 24 3 39 Kamila Gasiuk-Pihowicz 20 9 14 2 54 Jan Szyszko 19 12 37 3 29 Włodzimierz Czarzasty 15 20 21 4 40 Zaufanie Obojętność Nieufność Trudno powiedzieć / Nieznajomość Odmowa odpowiedzi Badanie „Aktualne problemy i wydarzenia” (327) przeprowadzono metodą wywiadów bezpośrednich (face-to-face) wspomaganych komputerowo (CAPI) w dniach 17–24 sierpnia 2017 roku na liczącej 1009 osób reprezentatywnej próbie losowej dorosłych mieszkańców Polski.
    [Show full text]
  • Druk Nr 2393 Warszawa, 6 Stycznia 2004 R
    Druk nr 2393 Warszawa, 6 stycznia 2004 r. SEJM RZECZYPOSPOLITEJ POLSKIEJ IV kadencja Pan Marek Borowski Marszałek Sejmu Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej Na podstawie art. 118 ust. 1 Konstytucji Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z dnia 2 kwietnia 1997 r. i na podstawie art. 32 ust. 2 regulaminu Sejmu niżej podpisani posłowie wnoszą projekt ustawy: - o zmianie ustawy o ubezpieczeniach obowiązkowych, Ubezpieczeniowym Funduszu Gwarancyjnym i Polskim Biurze Ubezpieczycieli Komunikacyj- nych. Do reprezentowania wnioskodawców w pracach nad projektem ustawy upoważniamy pana posła Kazimierza Marcinkiewicza. (-) Adam Bielan; (-) Andrzej Diakonow; (-) Ludwik Dorn; (-) Jacek Falfus; (-) Szymon Giżyński; (-) Przemysław Gosiewski; (-) Wojciech Jasiński; (-) Marek Jurek; (-) Elżbieta Kruk; (-) Marek Kuchciński; (-) Marcin Libicki; (-) Adam Lipiński; (-) Andrzej Liss; (-) Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz; (-) Barbara Marianowska; (-) Maria Nowak; (-) Marian Piłka; (-) Paweł Poncyljusz; (-) Jacek Sauk; (-) Małgorzata Stryjska; (-) Marek Suski; (-) Wojciech Szarama; (-) Aleksander Szczygło; (-) Bartłomiej Szrajber; (-) Kazimierz Michał Ujazdowski; (-) Wiesław Walendziak; (-) Zbigniew Wassermann; (-) Zbigniew Ziobro. Projekt USTAWA z dnia ............... 2004 r. o zmianie ustawy o ubezpieczeniach obowiązkowych, Ubezpieczeniowym Funduszu Gwarancyjnym i Polskim Biurze Ubezpieczycieli Komunikacyjnych Art. l. W ustawie z dnia 22 maja 2003 r. o zmianie ustawy o ubezpieczeniach obowiązkowych, Ubezpieczeniowym Funduszu Gwarancyjnym i Polskim Biurze Ubezpieczycieli Komunikacyjnych (Dz.U.
    [Show full text]
  • Blog: Poland's Presidential Election: Will the Government Collapse?
    LSE European Politics and Policy (EUROPP) Blog: Poland’s presidential election: Will the government collapse? Page 1 of 4 Poland’s presidential election: Will the government collapse? Poland’s government is in danger of losing its parliamentary majority following a bitter dispute over the timing of the country’s presidential election, writes Aleks Szczerbiak. But although the decomposition of the governing camp could herald a major political re-alignment, it is difficult to see a stable alternative administration emerging in the current parliament. The Polish government, led by the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party, is facing its biggest political crisis since it came to office in autumn 2015, precipitated by a dispute over whether the forthcoming presidential election should go ahead in spite of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The election was originally scheduled for 10 May, with a second round run-off a fortnight later between the two leading candidates if none secured more than 50% of the votes. It is crucially important because a victory for Law and Justice-backed incumbent Andrzej Duda would give the government a three-year run without any national elections. However, as the party lacks the three- fifths legislative majority required to over-turn a presidential veto, Duda’s defeat would seriously hamper Law and Justice’s ability to govern effectively. Given his relatively high approval ratings and the fact that he was Poland’s most trusted politician, Duda was widely assumed to be the favourite. At the same time, however, last autumn’s parliamentary election – when Law and Justice retained its overall majority but lost control of the Senate, Poland’s less powerful second chamber – showed how evenly balanced support for the government and opposition was, with many voters determined to use any opportunity to block the ruling party.
    [Show full text]
  • View/Open: Fritzalarik.Pdf
    HOW SUPERPOWERS GO TO WAR AND WHY OTHER STATES HELP THEM: THE IMPACT OF ASYMMETRIC SECURITY INTERDEPENDENCE ON WAR COALITION FORMATION - A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Georgetown University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Government by Alarik Morgan Fritz, M.A. Washington, DC October 2008 Copyright 2008 by Alarik Morgan Fritz All Rights Reserved ii The views expressed in this dissertation are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Center for Naval Analyses, the CNA Corporation, the US Navy, the Department of Defense, or the US Government. iii HOW SUPERPOWERS GO TO WAR AND WHY OTHER STATES HELP THEM: THE IMPACT OF ASYMMETRIC SECURITY INTERDEPENDENCE ON WAR COALITION FORMATION Alarik Morgan Fritz, M.A. Thesis Advisor: Andrew Bennett, Ph.D. ABSTRACT Nations usually go to war to defend against a threat (balancing) or gain some profit (bandwagoning). However, they sometimes join war coalitions without such motivations – or refuse to join them despite great pressure from the coalition leader. For example, the US-led coalition against Iraq in 2003 was largely composed of states that were not traditional US allies, were not threatened by Iraq, and had little to gain from the invasion. Furthermore, the US surprisingly failed to enlist key allies in the coalition. Are coalition formation dynamics different now than during the Cold War? This is an important question because such war coalitions may be more common in the future. This dissertation examines the impact of asymmetric security interdependence between minor states and a superpower vis-à-vis their war coalition choices.
    [Show full text]
  • 2020: What Next? Poland, Europe and the World in the Last Months of the Year Dear Readers
    DOSSIER FOR MEMBERS OF AMCHAM POLAND 2020: What next? Poland, Europe and the World in the last months of the year Dear Readers, “The one thing we can say with great certainty is that the ever-present uncer- tainty is constant, and will accompany us in the coming decade”. These are the words with which I opened the Risk and Trends 2020 conference on Jan- uary 31. This was right on target, although it is not a remarkable feat to find the future to be unpredictable. In January, I spoke about a decade of instability, about an acceleration of events, and about attention spans that have been re- duced to a bare minimum. I also spoke of the best way to deal with this new reality. And these words also seem to be relevant today. If 2020 is a storm and Poland is a boat battered by incoming waves, we at Polityka Insight would like to be the crow’s nest. We don’t count the waves, we won’t predict when the sun will come out, we don’t have a map that will lead to safe, dry land. Our ambition is to stand out above the chaos, see just a bit more, and deliver to you, as soon as possible, the knowledge of coming events, dangers and glimpses of hope. This is the reason we have prepared this publication which tries to antici- pate the final months of this crazy year. Many of the things we wrote will come true, some will not. In the meantime, unexpected swans will flow in, whose existence we didn’t even imagine.
    [Show full text]