All things considered, 2023 is not ending well. There’s an abundance of bad news stories (some of which we’ll get to in the next week or so), dominated by the catastrophe in Gaza and its global implications. So it’s nice to be able to dwell briefly on one of the most positive developments of the year.
Polish autocrat Jarosław Kaczyński, in power since 2015, was defeated by an unexpectedly clear margin in October’s general election. Now, two months later, that result has finally been implemented, with the swearing-in yesterday of his rival, centre-right leader Donald Tusk, as prime minister.
Kaczyński’s lieutenant, Mateusz Morawiecki, was reappointed as prime minister after the election, partly as a delaying tactic and also in the hope that he might be able to detach some votes from the opposition coalition in parliament. But that was never going to work; last month the opposition’s nominee for Speaker was easily elected, and on Monday Morawiecki was defeated on a vote of confidence, 266 to 190. Parliament promptly nominated Tusk for the job on a vote of 248 to 201.
The difference between the two votes is mostly due to the far-right group Confederation, with its 18 seats, which is anti-Kaczyński but not pro-Tusk. But as the second vote demonstrated, Tusk’s three-way coalition has a comfortable majority without them. On Tuesday, after presenting his government’s program, it was approved also 248-201.
That doesn’t mean that it will all be plain sailing from here. Turning around the Polish ship of state is a big task, and Tusk will have to contend with resistance from president Andrzej Duda – his majority, while substantial, is not big enough to override a presidential veto – as well as differences within his own very broad coalition. But it’s still a huge step forward both for Poland and for Europe in general.
When the voices of sanity stand firm and co-operate with one another, autocracy can be beaten. That’s the lesson that the world needs to hear.
The World is Not Enough 
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