Two new parties to shake up Polish politics?

The poll, undertaken by IBRiS pollsters for the Rzeczpospolita daily, shows that the conservative coalition led by Law and Justice (PiS) would get 32 percent of the vote.

Current rulers, the centre-right Civic Platform (PO) would come second with 24 percent, losing as much as 13 percentage points on the last survey undertaken by the pollster.

The reason for the drop in support in latest poll is due to the possible formation of two new political parties by the autumn, which the daily says would rock the Polish political scene.

A party which would be led by Paweł Kukiz could gain 18 percent in the Sejm lower parliamentary house.

Paweł Kukiz, a musician and independent candidate in the first round of the presidential elections, is reported to be mulling the creation of a new party on the back of his 20-percent success in the polls.

Speaking to Polish Radio earlier this week, Kukiz said that while he does not intend to create a political party as such, he mooted the formation of a civic movement which would engage a broad electorate.

The second new party on the IBRiS poll is one which is led by former finance minister and mastermind behind Poland’s economic tranformation of the early 1990s, Leszek Balcerowicz.

The poll gives Balcerowicz, who formed the “Nowoczesna.pl” civic association alongside economist Ryszard Petru and centrist politician Władysław Frasyniuk at the end of April, 11 percent.

Meanwhile, two major parties would not even find themselves in the Sejm. Current junior coalition partner the Polish Peasant’s Party (PSL) mustered only 4 percent of votes, while the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) would also fail to gain any seats with only 2 percent of the ballot.

However, the poll does not include a new formation proposed by a number of left-leaning academics, called “Freedom and Equality”, which is billed to launch this Friday. (jb)