Kaczyński rejoins Polish government amid pre-election tensions

Jarosław Kaczyński, the powerful head of Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, has returned to government as deputy prime minister – a position that he resigned from just one year ago.

As chairman of PiS, Kaczyński was already regarded as Poland’s de facto leader. However, his return to government – which was accompanied by all four other deputy prime ministers resigning their positions – is seen as a way of bringing greater unity and discipline to the campaign for this autumn’s parliamentary elections.

In a ceremony at the presidential palace just after noon, President Andrzej Duda formally swore Kaczyński in as deputy prime minister while accepting the resignations of the four other deputy prime ministers: Jacek Sasin, Mariusz Błaszcak, Piotr Gliński and Henryk Kowalczyk.

Duda, a PiS ally, thanked Kaczyński for returning to the government during the current “difficult and dynamic times”, and ahead of the “approaching elections”.

The decision marks a significant U-turn. Just one year ago, Kaczyński resigned as deputy prime minister in order, he said, to focus on preparing PiS for this year’s parliamentary elections, at which the party is seeking an unprecedented third consecutive term in office.

However, recent weeks have seen signs of tension within the ruling camp and reports of frustration at the conduct of the election campaign. That resulted in PiS’s campaign chief, Tomasz Poręba, resigning his position on Friday. He was replaced by Joachim Brudziński, a figure seen as close to Kaczyński.

Last week, the prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, also announced that the PiS leadership was discussing the potential return of Kaczyński to the government.

This morning, government spokesman Piotr Müller confirmed that all four current deputy prime ministers had resigned from that function, though will remain in their other ministerial roles: Sasin as minister for state assets, Błaszczak as defence minister, Gliński as culture minister and Kowalczyk as minister without portfolio.

This decision was made to reflect the fact that Kaczyński’s new role as sole deputy prime minister “will be completely different than it was during the previous period when he held this function”, Sasin told Polskie Radio.

Previously, Kaczyński had focused on coordinating policies relating to national security, but “now he will coordinate all government work, hence he will be the only deputy prime minister”, said Sasin.

Müller also made clear that the changes were being made with this autumn’s elections in mind.

“For the government to function well, it is only possible when there is strong support from the parliamentary majority, and the leader of this majority is…Jarosław Kaczyński,” said Müller.

“The fact that he is joining the government means political strengthening…ahead of the elections and a clear signal that we are fighting for victory,” he added.

During PiS’s first term in office, Kaczyński served as prime minister from 2006 to 2007. However, after the party returned to power in 2015, he remained outside government, preferring to pull the strings from behind the scenes.

But in September 2020 – amid a previous period of tension within the ruling camp – Kaczyński joined the cabinet as deputy prime minister, holding the position until his resignation in June 2022.

PiS is currently leading the polls ahead of this autumn’s elections. However, its current level of support, at around 34%, would not be enough to ensure a continued parliamentary majority. That could open up the path for an opposition coalition to take power.

Main image credit: Przemysław Keler/KPRP

Daniel Tilles

Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.