The newest political witch hunt against conservatives in Donald Tusk’s Poland targets Former Polish PM Mateusz Morawiecki (PiS/ECR), who’s charged with “exceeding his authority” by moving to organize the so-called “envelope elections” through entirely mail-in ballots in early 2020, at the height of the first coronavirus lockdowns.
Morawiecki, who recently replaced Giorgia Meloni as the president of the European Conservative and Reformist (ECR) party, is certain that he broke no laws by simply trying to hold the last presidential election according to the constitutional schedule, and he voluntarily waived his immunity so that prosecutors could put him on the stand.
“In the extremely difficult conditions of the pandemic, I tried to fulfill my duty to Poland,” the former PM said outside the prosecutor’s office on Thursday, February 27th, before his hearing began. “Looking at the actions of the current government, I sadly state that this is an idea that is alien to some.”
Morawiecki stressed that it was his duty to ensure that the presidential election was held within the deadline set by the constitution, as well as to uphold the right of every citizen to vote. That’s why his government made the necessary preparations to replace in-person voting with mail-in ballots.
However, the administrative court then decided that the decision was unlawful and that the election had to be held in person, even if it meant several weeks of delay beyond the constitutional deadline. By then, roughly 70 million zlotys ($17 million) had been spent by the government to print the postal ballots and prepare for the annulled ‘envelope election.’
Morawiecki, however, repeatedly stated that he did everything in accordance with the constitution and that he’d do the same again if he were faced with the same choice:
It was my duty. When the whole world stopped because of the pandemic, I acted, for Poland. I do that to this day. I wouldn’t change a thing.
The former PM also pointed out that just ten days before the government made the decision, the opposition—the same parties that now make up Donald Tusk’s liberal government—voted to introduce mail-in voting for up to 12 million people, or roughly one-third of the voting age population, in the large urban centers. What the PiS government did was simply to extend this measure to cover the entire country.
Nonetheless, Morawiecki is confident that whatever happens in the courts, the Tusk government will soon have to face its own “democratic verdict” from the people after the May presidential election.
The Tusk government has frequently been criticized for its blatant rule-of-law abuses, which include ignoring constitutional court rulings and persecuting opposition politicians, NGOs, and media alike.
Two weeks ago, the since-fired deputy prosecutor general launched an official investigation against the government based on the request of the constitutional court over rule of law violations amounting to a “coup d’état,” but PM Tusk only laughed about the allegations while Brussels literally silenced conservative lawmakers who wanted to raise the issue in the EU Parliament.
A few days ago, Polish media also revealed that the U.S. State Department under Joe Biden’s presidency financed anti-government NGOs in Poland with millions of dollars ahead of the 2023 parliamentary elections that resulted in Tusk’s wide coalition emerging, despite conservative Law and Justice (PiS) being the largest party. Through agencies such as USAID and the similarly infamous CIA front National Endowment for Democracy (NED), Polish entities received money specifically for campaigns that were meant to highlight the government’s ‘inhumane’ treatment of migrants and the alleged persecution of women and homosexuals.
That’s why the coming presidential election is so important for the country. “They will determine whether Poland will oppose regulations, bureaucracy, and the usurpation by EU institutions, or whether it will be a stronghold of common sense and the revolution of normality,” Morawiecki said in a recent interview.
