Poland: Nationalist Law and Justice party (PiS) victorious in parliamentary elections

Poland’s ruling National Conservative Law and Justice party (PiS) achieved a great victory in Sunday’s parliamentary election. 

Exit polls suggest that the right-wing party garnered 45.8 percent of the national vote, which will allow it to rule with an absolute majority in the Polish parliament, the Sejm, for the next four years.

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Trailing behind Law and Justice (PiS) with about half as many votes was the liberal Civic Coalition with just 25.5 percent. The leftist-globalist Social Democratic SLD came in third place with just 11.9 percent of the vote, while center-right PSL garnered just 8.9 percent.

Meanwhile, the new patriotic party, Konfederacja – a collection of nationalists, monarchists, and libertarians – amassed enough support (6.7 percent) to enter parliament. Perhaps Konfederacja’s most well-known face is Janusz Korwin-Mikke – founder of the Congress of the New Right party.

In the case that the current exit poll results stand, the Law and Justice Party would attain an absolute majority of 239 seats in the 460-seat Sejm – Poland’s lawmaking body. The Civic Coalition would occupy 130 seats, the SLD 43 seats, the PSL 34 seats, and Konfederacja 13 seats.

At an estimated 61.6 percent, voter turnout was the highest it’s been since the fall of communism in 1989.

“We have reasons to be joyful – despite the powerful front that was arraigned against us, we were able to win. I hope that tomorrow will bring confirmation of our success. We have four years of hard work in front of us because Poland needs to change further. And it must change for the better,” said Jarosław Kaczyńsk, leader of the Law and Justice party.