PROFILE: Karol Nawrocki wins presidential election in Poland
Karol Nawrocki, a right-wing presidential candidate backed by the socially-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) oppostition party, won the second round of the presidential election in Poland. His candidacy was officially announced in November 2024 as part of the party's strategy to bring a new generation of leaders into politics.
Karol Nawrocki took 50.89 percent of votes in the Polish presidential runoff, while his rival Rafal Trzaskowski, the mayor of Warsaw and a member of the ruling centrist party Civic Coalition, got 49.11 percent, election authority PKW announced, citing results from 100 percent of polling stations.
The turnout, at 71.63 percent, was the highest in the history of Poland's presidential elections.
Trzaskowski won the first round of the presidential election on May 18, securing 31.36 percent of the vote.
Nawrocki, who secured 29.54 of the vote in the first round on May 18, will take over as Poland's next president for a five-year term in August.
In the second round of the election, Karol Nawrocki presented an expanded version of his 'Plan 21' programme, divided into five main pillars: prosperity, security, development, normal state and tax contract.
He had promised to focus on tax reduction, greater support for families and a decisive reduction of the role of EU institutions in Poland's internal politics. The newly-elected President had been advocating for the abolition of the capital gains tax (so-called Belka tax), a 0 percent PIT tax for families with children and a tax-free inheritance guarantee.
In the area of social policy, Nawrocki had vowed to prioritise Poles in access to public services and to oppose the so-called EU Green Deal, among others.
The postulates of increasing the defence budget to 5 percent of GDP, creating an army of 300,000 soldiers and unequivocally opposing the sending of Polish soldiers to Ukraine had also been on his agenda.
Regarding economic development, his proposals concerned 'Big Four Development', i.e. investment in Poland's transportation hub CPK, nuclear power, seaports and local investment zones.
In response to the outcome of the first round, Nawrocki signed the so-called 'Mentzen Eight' - a document prepared by far-right candidate Slawomir Mentzen, who placed third in the ballot. The document contained the Confederation's demands, including a ban on any tax increases, opposition to Ukraine's entry into NATO and the maintenance of cash trade.
Born on March 3, 1983, in Gdansk, Karol Nawrocki is a historian by education, holding a PhD in humanities. He has served as President of the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) since 2021. Previously, from 2017 to 2021, he headed the Second World War Museum in Gdansk.
ao/ pel/