Poland’s President Duda has to run for Trzaskowski
In the presidential election in Poland, the national conservative incumbent Andrzej Duda missed the absolute majority required for re-election, according to initial forecasts. He now has to face a runoff election against opposition candidate Rafal Trzaskowski in two weeks. According to Exit Polls, Duda received 41.8 percent of the vote, Trzaskowski 30.4 percent.
Duda thanked his voters in Lowicz for the support on Sunday evening. It is important that the country is run as the majority of the population wants it, said Duda with cheers from his followers. He congratulated his challenger Trzaskowski on his success.
Trzaskowski said to supporters in Warsaw that the result shows that a high percentage of Poles want to switch. “We still have a chance to win.” The second round of elections will decide whether Poland will get a president who will closely watch the government or someone who will not respect his own signature.
The election was also seen as a kind of referendum on the policies of the national conservative governing party PiS, which has been the president since 2015 and has an absolute majority in parliament. A second term in Duda would underpin the party’s monopoly on power until the next parliamentary election in 2023.
