| Parliament name |
- |
| Structure of parliament |
Bicameral |
| Chamber name |
Sejm |
| Related chamber (for bicameral parliaments) |
Senat / Senate
|
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
9 October 2011 |
| Purpose of elections |
Elections were held for all the seats of the Sejm on the normal expiry of the members' term of office. |
On 4 August 2011, President Bronislaw Komorowski called parliamentary elections for 9 October. The Gender Quota bill, passed by parliament in January 2011, was applied for the first time in the 2011 elections (see note 1). Under the new electoral law, which came into force on 1 August 2011, Poles abroad are allowed to vote by post in general elections. The same law initially provided that elections would be held over two days, but this new provision was ruled unconstitutional by the Constitutional Tribunal (see note 2).
In the previous elections (October 2007), the Civic Platform (PO), led by Mr. Donald Tusk, took 209 seats in the 460-member Sejm (lower house) and 60 in the 100-member Senate. The party of then Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, Law and Justice (PiS), took 166 and 39 seats respectively. The Left and Democrats (LiD) and the Polish Peasant Party (PSL) took 53 and 31 seats in the Sejm, while the remaining seat went to the German-speaking minority (in the Sejm) and an independent candidate (in the Senate).
In November 2007, the Sejm elected Mr. Komorowski (PO) as its Speaker, while Mr. Bogdan Borusewicz (independent) was re-elected as the Senate President. President Lech Kaczynski - the outgoing Prime Minister's twin brother - subsequently designated Mr. Tusk as the new Prime Minister. The latter formed a coalition government comprising his PO and the PSL. Under his government, Poland was the only country in the European Union (EU) to record economic growth during the 2008 - 2009 global economic crisis.
In April 2010, President Kaczynski and his wife - as well over 90 other senior officials - were killed in a plane crash at Smolensk airport in Russia. They were on their way to a ceremony to mark the 70th anniversary of the 1940 Katyn massacre, in which some 22,000 Poles were executed by the Soviet secret police. Speaker Komorowski became Acting President. He defeated Mr. Jaroslaw Kaczynski in the run-off presidential elections held in July the same year.
The tragedy in Smolensk continued to cast a shadow over the country in 2011. In January, Russia's Interstate Aviation Committee published a report concluding that pilot error, induced by "psychological pressure", was the main cause of the crash. PiS leader Kaczynski criticized the report, which, in his view, "had made a mockery of Poland".
In late July, a commission established by Polish Interior Minister Jerzy Miller published its own report on the Smolensk crash. The report concluded that pilot error was mostly to blame, but that unclear instructions from Russian air traffic controllers and bad weather at Smolensk airport also played a part. Defence Minister Bogdan Klich (PO) resigned, as the special transport aviation regiment in charge of VIP flights is subordinate to the Defence Ministry.
The 2011 elections saw a renewal of the duel between the PO and the PiS. In all, 7,035 candidates, including 3,063 women, stood for the Sejm and 500 candidates, including 70 women, ran for the Senate. Several widows of parliamentarians killed in the Smolensk tragedy, and former Defence Minister Klich, decided to run.
Prime Minister Tusk's PO ran on the government's record. The country's economy was expected to grow by 4 per cent in 2011, the highest rate among the EU's seven largest economies. He promised to reinforce the country's relationship with the EU but at the same time work for a rapprochement with Russia. He qualified the PiS as a "Eurosceptic, inward-looking opposition" party.
Mr. Kaczynski's PiS criticized the PO for not doing enough to lower unemployment, which reached almost 12 per cent in 2011. It promised to create more jobs and accelerate the pace of economic development, especially in the rural eastern regions.
The PSL - the PO's coalition partner in the outgoing government - pledged to obtain more EU funds for farmers to keep food prices under control. It also promised to provide affordable insurance for farmers and to develop clean energy. PSL leader Waldemar Pawlak said he would consider joining a new PO-led government on condition that his party received the same number of ministerial posts (3) as in the outgoing government.
The Democratic Left Alliance (SLD, successor of the Communist Party that had ruled Poland until the fall of communism in 1989) promised higher wages and support for the poorest families. SLD leader Grzegorz Napieralski pledged to establish a better relationship both with Western partners and Russia.
Palikot's Movement (RP) - formed in October 2010 by a former PO member, Mr. Janusz Palikot - vowed to establish a clear separation between Church and State. It campaigned on the legalization of abortion, gay marriage and marijuana. Although the Roman Catholic Church remains influential in Poland, the RP was reportedly gaining traction among young voters.
President Komorowski urged voters to turn out massively, recalling that "every vote has the same power as the vote of the President, Prime Minister or a minister."
On 9 October, 48.92 per cent of the 30.7 million registered voters turned out at the polls.
Prime Minister Tusk's PO remained the largest party with 207 seats in the Sejm and 63 seats in the Senate. The PO became the first party to win two consecutive terms since the fall of communism. Its coalition partner, the PSL, took 28 and two seats respectively, thus giving the outgoing government a majority in the newly elected parliament. The PiS remained the second largest party, winning 157 seats in the Sejm and 31 seats in the Senate. The RP and the SLD took 40 and 27 seats in the Sejm. The remaining seat in the Sejm went to the German-speaking minority, while the remaining four seats in the Senate went to independents. Former Defence Minister Klich (PO) was elected to the Senate along with Ms. Beata Gosiewska, widow of former PiS MP Przemyslaw Gosiewski, a victim of the Smolensk tragedy. In all, 110 women were elected to the Sejm and 13 to the Senate.
The newly elected parliament held its first session on 8 November. The Sejm elected Ms. Ewa Kopacz (PO) as its new Speaker - the first woman in Poland to assume the post - while Mr. Bogdan Borusewicz (PO) was re-elected as the Senate President.
On 19 November, Mr. Tusk's new government - comprising his PO and the PSL - won a vote of confidence in the Sejm.
Note 1:
At least 35 per cent of all candidates on the lists of all parties running for seats in the 460-seat Sejm must be women and 35 per cent must be men. The rule does not apply to elections to the 100-seat Senate but does apply to elections to the European Parliament and municipal elections. On 28 January, President Komorowski signed a bill into law that was based on an initiative from the Polish Women's Congress, supported by the signatures of more than 100,000 citizens. The law came into force on 3 March 2011. Although the initial proposal was for a 50 per cent quota, parliament lowered the figure to 35 per cent.
Note 2:
The request to examine the new electoral law was submitted by the PiS, which claimed that two-day elections would allow turnout to be manipulated. In the same ruling, the Constitutional Tribunal ruled that a ban on TV advertising and billboards in election campaigns was incompatible with the Constitution and upheld the use of single-member constituencies in Senate elections. |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 9 October 2011 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
30'762'931
15'050'027 (48.92%)
680'524
14'369'503 |
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of votes |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Candidates |
Votes |
|
|
% |
|
|
| Civic Platform (PO) |
|
|
|
|
39.18 |
|
|
| Law and Justice (PiS) |
|
|
|
|
29.89 |
|
|
| Palikot Movement (RP) |
|
|
|
|
10.02 |
|
|
| Polish Peasant Party (PSL) |
|
|
|
|
8.36 |
|
|
| Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) |
|
|
|
|
8.24 |
|
|
| German Minority |
|
|
|
|
0.19 |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
|
|
|
|
| Civic Platform (PO) |
207
|
|
|
|
|
| Law and Justice (PiS) |
157
|
|
|
|
|
| Palikot Movement (RP) |
40
|
|
|
|
|
| Polish Peasant Party (PSL) |
28
|
|
|
|
|
| Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) |
27
|
|
|
|
|
| German Minority |
1
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
350
110
23.91%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Sources:
IPU Group (12.10.2011, 09.11.2011, 30.11.2011, 09.01.2012, 01.01.2014, 01.01.2015)
http://wybory2011.pkw.gov.pl/wyn/en/000000.html#tabs-1
Note on the distribution of seats
German Minority member is considered as non-affiliate since a minimum of three members is needed to form a parliamentary group in the Sejm. After the election seven members left the Law and Justice (PiS) and became non-affiliated members.
At the first session, held on 8 November 2011, 458 members, including 110 women, were sworn in. The mandates of two candidates-elect were invalidated due to incompatibilities with their profession. Two new members, both men, were sworn in on 17 November. The total number of women thus remained at 110 out of 460 members.
The composition of the Sejm as at 30 November 2011:
Civic Platform (PO): 207
Law and Justice (PiS): 137
Palikot Movement (RP): 41
Polish Peasant Party (PSL): 28
Democratic Left Alliance (SLD): 26
Polish Solidarity: 18*
Independents: 3**
*Polish Solidarity was formed by candidates elected under the PiS banner in 2011.
*Independent members: one representing the German minority and two elected under the PiS banner in 2011. |
|
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
