The presidential election in Poland should be played out for nothing. After Sunday's poll, the outcome of the second round of the presidential election remains uncertain. According to an exit poll conducted by Ipsos, Andrzej Duda, the Polish conservative president, could obtain the majority with 51% of the votes in front of Rafal Trzaskowski, the mayor of Warsaw.
This election, which had a very high participation rate for Poland (67.9%), opposes two very different visions for this country. President Duda is supported by the conservative nationalist Law and Justice party (PiS, in power) but also by Donald Trump, while the mayor of Warsaw represents the main centrist opposition party Civic Platform (PO).
He promises in particular to restore ties with Brussels, strained since the PiS came to power in 2015. The latter accuses the government of reversing the democratic freedoms acquired three decades ago, at the fall of communism. For his part, Andrzej Duda has promised to defend the popular social assistance implemented by the PiS. It benefited from the firm support of farmers, workers, unemployed and retired people.
The rest could be played out in court
In the night, Andrzej Duda said he was confident. "I am satisfied with my victory, even if it is an exit poll for the moment," he said in front of supporters, surrounded by his wife and daughter. For his part, Rafal Trzaskowski stressed that "the result has probably never been so close in the history of Poland".
However, according to analysts, this presidential election will leave its mark. "It is a Poland divided in two which comes out of these elections [...] and it will be difficult to calm the situation and to renew the links between the two camps," said political scientist Kazimierz Kik of the University of Kielce, in southern Poland. He added: “Poland is waking up to a sad battlefield with the two sides defeated, because no one can claim victory. "
Especially since the rest could be played out in court. "I think there will certainly be demonstrations and I think the whole issue will end up in the Supreme Court," said Anna Materska-Sosnowska, political scientist at the University of Warsaw. The outgoing president ran a campaign in which he notably attacked the rights of LGBT people and rejected the idea of compensation for Jewish property stolen by the Nazis and under the communist regime.
