Poland: Tusk wins vote of confidence
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has won a vote of confidence in parliament, with 243 votes in favour of his government and 210 against. The governing coalition holds 242 of the 460 seats in the Sejm. Tusk called the vote after liberal presidential candidate Rafał Trzaskowski lost the runoff presidential election. The press sees little new momentum for the government despite this victory.
Too much past, too little future
Newsweek Polska accuses Tusk of lacking the resolve needed for a convincing fresh start:
“Donald Tusk spent too much time today talking about the past and far too little on his vision for the future. ... There is still no consensus within the coalition on how to implement numerous points in the programme. And these are points that could be described as key, or at least significant. ... Anyone who had hoped for a new beginning is likely to feel disappointed.”
A case of "Gorbachev syndrome"?
Although Tusk is widely seen as a model politician internationally, his popularity in Poland has been waning for some time, journalist Jarosław Kuisz observes in Interia:
“Nothing has stuck in the mind. ... The government statement was delivered as if our lives didn't unfold on social media. As if we weren't living in the age of Mr Trump's triumphs. Unbelievable. Moreover, it sometimes seemed as if the prime minister wasn't addressing us, the citizens, but the absent PiS MPs. ... One can't avoid the impression that Donald Tusk is haunted by the dangerous 'Gorbachev syndrome', named after the Soviet politician who was highly popular and respected outside his country but less appreciated at home.”
Things won't get any easier
Tusk may have won the vote in the Sejm but he faces an uphill battle over the next two years, writes Dagens Nyheter:
“In fact, governing the country for the remaining term of the current parliament – until autumn 2027 – will be at least as difficult as it has been ever since Tusk's government took office in December 2023. Outgoing President Andrzej Duda has spent the last 18 months blocking a series of important democratic reforms. Nawrocki, who takes office on 6 August, is even more ideologically radical and unlikely to make life any easier for Tusk.”