At the beginning of his lengthy speech, the president thanked representatives of all parties for substantive and constructive talks. “I already have certain conclusions and decisions,” the president said. But he did not disclose them, apart from one. It concerns the date of the election.
“Today I can say that the date I have initially scheduled as the date of the first sitting of the Sejm will be Monday, November 13. That is, exactly the day following Sunday, November 12, when the term ends,” said President Andrzej Duda.
“Yesterday I informed representatives of all the new parliamentary forces that I see no reason today to shorten in any way this, constitutional—I emphasize—four-year term of parliament,” the president added.
He mentioned that representatives of both largest sides of the political scene had assured him that they would have a parliamentary majority to support their candidate for prime minister.
Between the lines, one can read that the president will entrust the mission of forming the government to the current prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki.
“For the first time, we have a situation in which, before this so-called first constitutional step, the circumstances are as they are. It is a new situation. Fortunately, the Constitution allows time here. Ah, I very strongly want to emphasize one more thing in this context. I also asked, above all, representatives of Third Way, the Civic Coalition and the Left whether, in connection with this, there were concrete proposals concerning the composition of a possible future government, whether they had already formed a coalition, and whether these matters had been agreed. I heard that no formal coalition had been concluded,” Andrzej Duda said.
“I assured all participants in the meetings we held yesterday and the day before yesterday that absolutely all constitutional deadlines will be observed, as will all constitutional rules concerning the establishment of parliament and the appointment and election of the future government,” the president added.
This probably means that Andrzej Duda will delay as long as possible the appointment of a government formed by the democratic opposition—that is, the Civic Coalition, Third Way and the Left.
Andrzej Duda’s full statement
Good morning. Thank you for coming to the Presidential Palace for this brief meeting, which gives me an opportunity to summarize the events you have observed over the past two days. As you know, parliamentary consultations were held here, at my invitation, at the Presidential Palace—one might put it that way—concerning the future constitution of the new parliament and, naturally, the election of a new government in connection with it.
As you know, I invited representatives of all groups that took part in these elections and whose representatives won parliamentary mandates in our parliament. First and foremost, I would like to thank the participants of these meetings from all groups for coming, for accepting the invitation, and for the very substantive atmosphere of the discussions, with a very serious approach to this extremely important matter of state: the constitution of the future parliament and the formation of the future government. I am grateful for this; I was not disappointed, and I thank you very much. Everyone approached the matter very responsibly. We had, I can confidently say, very good and very substantive discussions. First, on personal matters; second, on substantive matters related to various issues whose consideration and political decisions await us in the near or more distant future. I am pleased that I was able to speak with representatives of the entire political scene, from the right to the left.
Ladies and gentlemen, in connection with this I already have certain conclusions and decisions, which I initially announced yesterday and am confirming definitively today, including for the public. Well then, ladies and gentlemen, I requested these meetings and invited representatives of all electoral committees and parliamentary groups for a very simple reason. We hear many statements in the media and comments from individual politicians. I invited representatives selected by the respective groups so that I could hear a serious opinion on the actual situation within their groups. And now I can tell you how it has taken shape as a result of the discussions held over the past two days.
First of all, today we have two serious candidates for the position of prime minister. We have two political groups claiming to have a parliamentary majority and having their own candidate for prime minister. One group is United Right, represented by members of Law and Justice, headed by Prime Minister Morawiecki and Marshal Terlecki; the other is the Civic Coalition, Third Way and the Left. Law and Justice, the United Right, informed me and the other meeting participants that their candidate for prime minister, as the group that won the election and achieved the best result, would be Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki. In response to a direct question, they also informed me that they assumed they would have a majority in the Sejm chamber enabling them to support this candidate and his proposed Council of Ministers. Subsequently, I heard a similar message in turn from the Civic Coalition, and then from Third Way, both from representatives of the Polish People’s Party—specifically its chairman, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz—and from the chairman of Poland 2050, Mr. Hołownia: they had their own candidate, and that candidate, as I had previously heard from the Civic Coalition, was its chairman, Donald Tusk. The meeting with representatives of the Left produced the same result: they informed me that they also had a common candidate with the other two groups, namely the Civic Coalition and Third Way, and that their candidate for prime minister, and I emphasize, also the Left’s candidate, was Chairman Donald Tusk. This shows that, in fact, we currently have two serious candidates.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is a new situation, one might say, by our democratic standards. There has never been a situation in which one group won the election, while the remaining or other groups that also have representatives in parliament claimed that they would have a majority without the winning group and would put forward their own candidate for prime minister. As you understand, I must consider this. It is certainly one of the most serious issues I am dealing with at this moment. Everyone knows that, until now, the practice was for the prime minister’s post to be entrusted by the president to a candidate put forward by the winning group. But it was also always the case that the winning group either had a coalition established in advance, with no one else claiming to have a candidate who would command a majority, or simply had a majority of its own, as happened in 2015 and 2019—the so-called independent majority. Today it is different.
For the first time, we have a situation in which, before this so-called first constitutional step, the circumstances are as they are. It is a new situation. Fortunately, the Constitution allows time here. Ah, I very strongly want to emphasize one more thing in this context. I also asked, above all, representatives of Third Way, the Civic Coalition and the Left whether there were concrete proposals concerning the composition of a possible future government, whether they had already formed a coalition, and whether these matters had been agreed. I heard that no formal coalition had been concluded—that is, that there was currently no coalition agreement—and that, consequently, it was not yet possible to responsibly provide the names of specific people who were or would be presented as ministerial candidates. So, as can be seen, this matter is the subject of coalition negotiations.
As I said, fortunately, in light of the provisions of our Constitution and the calendar, there is still time for decisions in this regard to be made by the individual groups and candidates. Ladies and gentlemen, the term of the previous, still-serving parliament is currently continuing. This term ends on Sunday, November 12. Yesterday I informed representatives of all the new parliamentary forces that I see no reason today to shorten in any way this, constitutional—I emphasize—four-year term of parliament. This is also a constitutional term, and its shortening could occur only in exceptional circumstances. No such exceptional circumstances are visible today. In fact, in my view, this term can calmly be completed, and that is what should happen, taking into account constitutional rules. But I also said that I understood the expectation that the new term and the work of the new parliament would begin without delay.
Therefore, today I can say that the date I have initially scheduled as the date of the first sitting of the Sejm will be Monday, November 13. That is, exactly the day following Sunday, November 12, when the term ends. This is the earliest possible date that can be considered here in light of the constitutional rules. Please prepare accordingly. This is the decision at present. Naturally, I still have other decisions to make. It will be necessary to issue an appropriate official act in the form of a decision announcing this first date. I assure you that it will be issued at the appropriate time. I also assure you that decisions will be made concerning the person of the senior marshal, who will open and inaugurate the proceedings of the new parliament. And then, of course, the so-called first step: indicating the candidate for prime minister who will organize the future government. These are the further steps that will follow.
I assured all participants in the meetings we held yesterday and the day before yesterday that absolutely all constitutional deadlines would be observed, as would all constitutional rules concerning the establishment of parliament and the appointment and election of the future government. Not only will I, as president, monitor these deadlines, but I will also stand guard over these deadlines and all the rules, ensuring that they are not violated by anyone. That is how matters stand today, ladies and gentlemen.
We are continuing to work on this matter. I understand that negotiations are ongoing. I told all participants in these meetings that I am open to any proposals; if anyone believes another meeting with me is needed, I am ready to meet. As I emphasize, these meetings and consultations were conducted in a good, very substantive atmosphere, for which I am grateful to all their participants, because they demonstrate a serious approach. As I already learned during meetings of the National Security Council, regardless of our beliefs and where we sit in the Sejm chamber or on the political scene, we are capable of discussing important Polish matters calmly and substantively. The same was true over the past two days. I want to express my conviction that, calmly and at the appropriate time, we will first constitute the parliament, second make the appropriate elections—I am thinking here of the Speaker of the Sejm and the deputy speakers, and similarly the Senate—and also form a new Polish government. Thank you very much.