Polish government wins parliamentary vote of confidence called in wake of presidential election defeat

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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Poland’s government has won a vote of confidence in parliament called by Prime Minister Donald Tusk in the wake of this month’s presidential election victory by opposition-aligned conservative Karol Nawrocki. Had he not received the confidence of a majority in parliament, Tusk would have had to resign.

In a vote on Wednesday afternoon, 243 members of the Sejm, the more powerful lower house of parliament, supported the government while 210 were against. There were no abstentions.

All of the votes in favour of Tusk’s administration came from the four groups that make up the ruling camp: his centrist Civic Coalition (KO), the centre-right Polish People’s Party (PSL), centrist Poland 2050 (Polska 2050) and The Left (Lewica).

All opposition parties voted against it, including the national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS), the largest opposition party, the far-right Confederation (Konfederacja), but also the left-wing Together (Razem) party that until last year caucused with the ruling coalition before breaking with it.

How members of each parliamentary caucus voted in the vote of confidence in Donald Tusk’s government (za = for, przeciw = against)

Tusk’s government took power in December 2023, replacing the former PiS administration. However, it has found itself hampered by the presence of President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, who has the power to block legislation by vetoing it or sending it to the PiS-aligned constitutional court.

The ruling coalition had hoped that its candidate, Rafał Trzaskowski, would win the presidential election run-off on 1 June, thereby ending the current political deadlock. However, Nawrocki’s victory means that much of Tusk’s agenda will remain impossible to implement.

That has raised questions about the effectiveness – and even viability – of the government during the remaining two years of its term in office. In response, Tusk last week announced he would hold a vote of confidence to demonstrate that he still had the support of parliament.

On Wednesday morning, ahead of the vote, Tusk gave a speech to the Sejm in which he defended the record of his administration, noting that it has increased spending on defence and social support to record levels while also overseeing a decline in inflation.

“We have the highest economic growth in Europe, the lowest unemployment rates, rising investment levels and rising real wages,” said the prime minister, while also declaring that, under his government, Poland has now “returned to the top of European and world politics”.

Tusk pointed out that, over the last two years, Poland has had four elections – parliamentary, local, European and presidential – and that his coalition has triumphed in three of them.

“It’s 3-1 to us, but we conceded the last goal,” said the prime minister, who is a big football fan, quoted by Gazeta Wyborcza.

“The results of the presidential elections will not reduce our mandate in any way…[or] change the principles of the political system,” said Tusk. “We have two-and-a-half years of full mobilisation ahead of us. This is our obvious duty, even if I understand the mood of those who now feel the bitterness of defeat.”

The prime minister did, however, confirm that next month there would be a government reshuffle. Media reports have suggested that a number of ministers could lose their jobs and some departments could be merged.

Tusk also confirmed that the government would this month appoint a spokesperson for the first time since coming to power 18 months ago. Some in the ruling coalition have blamed a lack of clear communication for the government’s unpopularity.

A poll by state research agency CBOS last month found that only 32% of Poles hold a positive view of the government while 44% have a negative one.

PiS MPs chose not to be present in the chamber for Tusk’s speech, instead gathering outside the Sejm, where the party’s leader, Jarosław Kaczyński, spoke to the media.

He accused the Tusk government of overseeing “a complete breakdown of the rule of law in Poland”, mismanaging public finances, and favouring German interests over Polish ones, reports news website wPolityce.

Kaczyński last week called on the government to step down and be replaced by a “technical” administration made up of “apolitical experts”. Today in the Sejm, PiS MP Janusz Kowalski said he hoped that Nawrocki’s victory could lead to early parliamentary elections to choose a new government.

“On 1 June 2025, the Donald Tusk project ended, just as communism once ended,” said Kowalski, quoted by news website Onet.

Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.

Main image credit: Slawomir Kaminski / Agencja Wyborcza.pl

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.