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Tens of thousands of people in Warsaw have taken part in duelling political marches, led by the two men vying for the Polish presidency in a 1 June runoff election, which is expected to be close and consequential.
Many of those who joined Sunday’s marches had travelled from across Poland, a country of nearly 38 million people, not just to support a candidate but to rally behind sharply divergent visions for the nation’s future.
At the head of one march was Rafał Trzaskowski, 53, the pro-EU mayor of Warsaw who supports abortion rights and LGBTQ+ inclusion. He is a close political ally of the Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk, who has led a centrist coalition government since late 2023.
During a speech to a huge crowd, Trzaskowski laid out his vision for a Poland that is inclusive and vowed to work to help develop industry as the nation continues a economic transformation into a regional economic and military power.
In another part of Warsaw, Karol Nawrocki, 42, addressed his supporters. A conservative historian and former boxer, Nawrocki is backed by the national conservative Law and Justice party, which governed Poland from 2015 to 2023. He heads the state-run Institute of National Remembrance, which under Law and Justice’s populists became known for promoting nationalist versions of Polish history.
“I am a Pole who understands the hardships of everyday life,” Nawrocki told the crowd. “I stand before you and I am fully convinced that I am your voice.”
Earlier this month, the White House released photographs of Nawrocki meeting Donald Trump in the Oval Office – a tacit but unmistakable show of support from the US president.
Trzaskowski argued in his speech that Nawrocki was not fit to represent the nation as its president.
“It’s high time for truth, honesty, to win, for the future to win, and that’s exactly what’s at stake in these elections,” Trzaskowski said. “On 1 June, we will all make a decision that may be one of the most important in our lives. A decision that will affect the fate of our children, the fate of our grandchildren.”
The runoff follows a first-round vote on 18 May that narrowed the initial field of 13 candidates down to Trzaskowski and Nawrocki. Recent polls show them running neck-and-neck, within the margin of error, making the outcome impossible to predict.
Both men are now courting voters who backed the far-right libertarian Sławomir Mentzen, who won nearly 15% in the first round.
