Warsaw
Tired of scandals and high unemployment, Polish voters booted out the incumbents this week, just as they have in every election since they gained democracy in 1989. Polish governments in the post-Soviet era have alternated between former Communists and former Solidarity activists. This time, with turnout at just 40 percent, the former Communists lost to the conservative Law and Justice Party and the free-market Civic Platform. Law and Justice leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski is expected to be named prime minister. But he said he would step aside if his identical twin brother, Warsaw Mayor Lech Kaczynski, wins the presidential vote as expected, in October. It would be confusing for everyone, Jaroslaw Kaczynski said, if the president and prime minister looked exactly alike.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
