Polish presidential candidate Karol Nawrocki (C) with his sons Anthony (L) and Daniel (R) during the presidential election night in Warsaw, Poland, 1 June 2025. Photo: EPA-EFE/Marcin Obara 

Poland has elected Karol Nawrocki, the conservative and Eurosceptic candidate from the Law and Justice (PiS) party, as its next president. He received 50.89% of the vote in Sunday’s decisive second round of voting, according to the National Electoral Commission.

His opponent, Rafał Trzaskowski — the liberal mayor of Warsaw and candidate for the ruling Civic Coalition — garnered 49.11%. Voter turnout was high, with 71.63% of eligible voters casting their ballots.

Nawrocki, a staunch opponent of illegal immigration and an outspoken critic of both Brussels and Kyiv, has expressed clear resistance to Ukraine’s accession to NATO and fast-track membership of the European Union.

He is set to succeed fellow PiS politician Andrzej Duda, whose second and final term ends in August. Duda first assumed the presidency in 2015 and served throughout the Law and Justice’s tenure as the ruling power until 2023, when the liberal Civic Coalition came to power following parliamentary elections.

Donald Tusk, former European Council president, now leads the government as prime minister. While the Polish presidency is largely ceremonial, it retains significant powers, including the ability to veto legislation — a tool Duda frequently used to block liberal reforms and assert the conservative agenda.

Nawrocki’s victory means political tensions between the liberal government and the conservative presidency are likely to continue. Like Duda, Nawrocki is expected to clash with Tusk’s administration.

Had Trzaskowski won, the Civic Coalition would likely have gained a freer hand in pushing forward key reforms, particularly in areas such as abortion rights and LGBT protectio