A week after Poland’s government change, the prime minister’s pro‑European bloc began to take shape. Donald Tusk faced stiff resistance from ultraconservative forces, coming from a political history that included a long eight‑year tenure and a contentious relationship with President Andrzej Duda. Tusk immediately signaled a push to alter the media landscape that had been controlled by the opposition party, Law and Justice (PiS). In a move that targeted public media, leaders of TVP, PAP, and the state radio RP were dismissed.
Following the Culture Ministry’s Wednesday decision, PiS MPs organized a solidarity rally in front of TVP’s headquarters, with party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski among those present. A number of protesters spent the night at the site. Tusk’s plans drew sharper fire when Duda accused the new government of violating the Constitution and degrading the media environment. The exchange underscored the broader friction between the executive branch and the media sector.
What began as a political opening soon revealed the many hurdles awaiting the new government. A bold 100‑point program in the Sejm sought not just legislative change but also access to recovery funds tied to post‑pandemic support from Brussels. Tusk, who leads the liberal Civic Platform (PO), found backing from two other pro‑European coalitions, the Third Way and Lewica, enabling him to seize power with a renewed, multilateral majority.
Complex coexistence among rivals
The squeeze on public media and the ambition to reshape PiS into a party under new management sit at the core of the administration’s strategy. A judicial reform, pursued under the leadership of Kaczynski’s faction, became a central point of contention with the European Commission. Brussels argued that the reform endangered judicial independence, highlighting ongoing clashes over rule of law standards that have defined the PiS era.
Only two months into office, Tusk inherited the task of forming a government. President Duda, who had previously been allied with PiS, handed the task to the prime minister while emphasizing that PiS retained the largest vote share, even though it did not secure a governing majority. The political arithmetic remained unsettled, with alliances still forming.
The bloc supporting Tusk commands a solid majority in the Sejm with 248 of 460 seats, while Szymon Hołownia leads the centrist Third Way ally, which acts as a pivotal partner. Yet power at the presidency still casts a long shadow. Duda signs laws approved by parliament, and his 2025 reelection is looming. Until then, the challenge remains: a delicate balance between advancing reforms and maintaining consensus.
Efforts to reform the public media landscape
Tusk has articulated a goal to reshape the public media environment. He indicated that there would be no budget allocation for TVP in the coming year and called for the dismissal of senior managers deemed subservient to PiS. Duda labeled the policy direction as immoral, arguing that the majority’s approach ignored constitutional norms.
A symbolic seizure of TVP’s headquarters followed by a virtual shutdown of broadcasting underscored the immediacy of the conflict. TVP displayed a still image during the outage, signaling a broader confrontation between the government and the public broadcaster. The friction has extended beyond political disagreements to the functioning of public institutions, with accusations of mismanagement and power abuses resurfacing as part of the broader narrative.
In the political discourse that has accompanied recent elections, PiS has alternative labeling, at times describing opponents in stark terms. The present administration contends with a legacy of controversy over media control and governance. As Poland moves toward an unsettled political horizon, the tug of war between reform and stability remains a defining feature of the era.