Support for Poland’s Ruling Party Wanes Ahead of the Vote, Poll Reveals

 

by Natalia Ojewska | May 8, 2023

Poland’s ruling party saw a slide in support and may struggle to hold on to power after an election expected in October, a poll showed.

Law & Justice’s backing dropped just over a percentage point to 32%, according to an April 27-30 poll conducted by United Surveys for Wirtualna Polska website. That result would give the nationalist ruling party an estimated 179 lawmakers in the 460-seat lower house, well short of a majority.

Poland’s Tight Race
Law & Justice may struggle to secure a majority in parliament.

The ruling party aims to hold its grip on power for a third term, but has come under pressure as Poles grapple with the highest inflation in a quarter century. The government in Warsaw last month imposed an unexpected ban on food imports from Ukraine in a bid to placate a restive base protesting lower prices because of a grain glut.

A path to power for Law & Justice involving votes from the right-wing, anti-European Union alliance known as Confederation also looked slim. Confederation would gain 49 seats in the contest, still short of a majority.

The main opposition Civic Platform slipped 1.3 percentage points to stand at 23.8%. A potential left-leaning coalition with three other parties — Poland 2050, the Polish Peasants Party and the Left — would secure a slim majority with 231 seats, the poll showed. United Surveys surveyed 1,000 adults.