Polish opposition parties join forces for general vote
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Confederation, a radical right-wing opposition group, has decided to run on its own.
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Centrist opposition party leader Donald Tusk and Lech Walesa who accuse the government of eroding democracy, leading an anti-government march in Warsaw, Poland, on June 4, 2023 (AP)
Most of Poland's opposition parties announced on Thursday that they had teamed up for part of the general election on October 15, which polls indicate would be a tight race.
The parties were unable to agree to work together for the lower house of parliament, but they did agree to run together for seats in the Senate.
Along with officials from the other competing political parties, Wlodzimierz Czarzasty, co-leader of the New Left party, told reporters that they "will do everything to win."
"In each district, we will present just one candidate whom we will all support," said Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz of the Third Way centrist-right alliance.
Another participant is the centrist Civic Coalition, with its leaders including the former Prime Minister and current president of the European Council Donald Tusk.
Confederation, a radical right-wing opposition group, has decided to run on its own.
The opposition coalition is aiming to win about 65 of the 100 senate seats, where they now hold a narrow majority.
The 460-member lower house is under the control of the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party, which has been in office since 2015.
According to recent polls, the PiS will likely receive about 33% of the vote in the election.
The Civic Coalition will take 29% of the vote, followed by the Third Way with 9.5% and the Left with over 9%.
Twelve percent of the vote is predicted to go to the Confederation.
Polish ruling party lures supporters via anti-German, anti-EU rhetoric
As legislative elections near, the right-wing ruling party of Poland is adopting more anti-German and anti-EU stances in a bid to draw their most dedicated supporters, analysts said.
At the forefront of this campaign is Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of the PiS party, who recently insinuated that Germany intended to meddle in the October 15 elections.
Kaczynski unveiled one of the questions his party wants its supporters to vote on in a national referendum on election day: "Are you in favor of selling state enterprises?"
The nationalist leader said the privatization of public institutions would profit Germany, accusing Berlin of wanting to impose Polish opposition leader Tusk of the Civic Platform (PO) party - who has been the ruling party's head rival.
Tusk is everything the government stands against: He is Poland's former Prime Minister and president of the European Council.
Political analyst Marcin Zaborowski of Lazarski University in Warsaw said between 30 and 40 percent of Polish citizens do not trust Germany, even going as far as being hostile toward it. In that context, PiS aims through the referendum to polarize the election campaign, he added.
