Polish opposition nationalist party “Law and Justice“ is in first place in yesterday's local elections in the country, according to an exit poll cited by Reuters and BTA.
This is a setback for Prime Minister Donald Tusk's ambitions to consolidate his control over power, the agency commented. If the predicted results are confirmed, they will dash Tusk's hopes of leading his “Civil Coalition” in first place regardless of his other partners in the ruling coalition.
Although “Law and Justice“ ahead of the “Civil Coalition”, the opposition party remains significantly behind the total result of the three formations that participate in the coalition government.
According to the exit poll of Ipsos “Law and Justice“ received 33.7 percent of the votes, and the “Civil Coalition” is in second place with 31.9 percent.
The other partners in the government, the center-right “Third Way“ and “Leftists”, according to the survey, receive 13.5 and 6.8 percent respectively.
“Law and Justice“ it also came first in the parliamentary elections in October, but lost its majority in parliament. Recently, the party and its partners have been engulfed in internal confrontations.
Brussels is closely monitoring the results of Tusk's coalition in the context of the upcoming European Parliament elections in June. Opinion polls in Europe predict a strong showing for the populist right.