Former President of the European Council Donald Tusk is expected to announce his candidacy for the presidency of the Polish opposition Civic Platform (PO) party on Saturday, marking his return to politics in his country.
The 64-year-old politician co-founded PO 20 years ago and was his country’s prime minister from 2007 to 2014.
Tusk currently chairs the European People’s Party (EPP) and is a frequent commentator on Polish politics.
“Donald Tusk is back,” said Tomasz Simoniak, VP of PO, ahead of the party’s convention this Friday.
Malgorzata Kidava-Blonska, another MP and Deputy Speaker of the Parliament, believes that Tusk’s return “will solve many of our problems” and is “the path we have all been waiting for.”
Tusk, passionate about football, grew up in the port city of Gdansk (north), where the Solidarity movement was born and faced the communist regime.
Between 2014 and 2019, when he was President of the European Council, he managed crises such as migration and the economic situation in Greece, or difficult Brexit negotiations.
Uncertainty has reigned since Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski, a finalist in last year’s presidential election, announced his willingness to take over the party’s leadership.
According to press reports, Trzaskovsky refused and will not oppose Tusk’s candidacy.
PO ranks third in voting intent polls, behind the conservative-nationalist Law and Justice Party (PiS) and the centrist opposition Poland 2050 party.
PiS has lost a small majority in parliament and relations with the EU are deteriorating due to various problems, such as conflicting judicial reforms.
Elections in Poland are slated for 2023, but analysts estimate that the ruling party may hold elections to avoid a vote of no confidence in parliament.
PiS is also celebrating its congress this Saturday, which is expected to confirm Jaroslaw Kaczynski as its leader.
The party is expected to approve the appointment of 53-year-old Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki as deputy leader, making him the likely successor to 72-year-old Kaczynski.
This week’s poll shows that the ruling right-wing coalition, dominated by PiS, leads with 34% of the vote, followed by Poland 2050 with 17.1% and PO with 16.9%.
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