Has Tusk decided to become the Polish “Buffalo Man”? Because this is where the story about the possibility of “election fraud” leads

Part of the opposition, with Donald Tusk at the helm, is increasingly turning to the account of the possibility of the authorities falsifying the autumn parliamentary elections. In their view, the fear of relinquishing power can paralyze PiS and encourage actions that have little to do with democracy. Recent electoral law changes are also being used to build this narrative. The Civic Platform leader called it “a rape of the fundamentals of democracy.” Will Poles believe this story? A whopping 47 percent, according to United Surveys’ January survey for DGP and RMF FM. The Poles fear that the autumn elections are being tampered with. It is much! Moreover, such a scenario is feared by no fewer than 70 percent. opposition voters! Are opposition leaders aware that they are playing with matches?

Will Hermeliński calm someone down?

Can elections in Poland be manipulated at all? According to the former head of the PKW, Wojciech Hermeliński, there is no such possibility. In a recently published interview in Plus Minus magazine, he judged that: “With the current legal status, there is no possibility for large-scale election fraud.”

It has always been, is and always will be that someone somewhere adds a few votes to the ballot box or sells a vote for a bottle of vodka. Such stories are known from district committees. But that has no influence on the result of the national elections. If each party has its representatives on the committee, everyone looks at each other’s hands and large-scale counterfeiting is ruled out

said Hermelinski.

That was also the opinion of the former head of the PKW “all elections after 1989 can be considered fair, although not every election campaign has been characterized by equality of all participants”. I would add that Hermeliński is not a sympathizer of the current government, but rather a frequent critic of it. But I doubt his voice will be heard by politicians who want to frighten the Poles in the campaign with the possibility of fraudulent voters. It would be different if Hermeliński sounded the alarm. Then we would certainly see him at the side of Donald Tusk at a press conference, where he would speak of an “attack on democracy”.

Who will be the Polish “Buffalo Man”?

Let’s take another look at United Surveys’ research. We learn from it that no less than 65 percent. of respondents who watch “Fakty” TVN believe that the authorities may resort to rigging the elections. 65 percent! I am afraid that the station from Wiertnicza will cause this percentage to rise more than once. Unfortunately, but at the expense of democracy, because it is nothing more than undermining confidence in state institutions, which we still trust anyway. At this point I recall the reaction of the opposition (right) in Poland to the events that took place in Washington after the announcement of the results of the presidential elections in the United States. We all watched with concern the “attack on the Capitol” and the Dantesque scenes that took place there. What happened to our greatest ally should be cause for concern in Poland, but in Poland it was used by the opposition to beat power with a stick, which Donald Trump popularly liked.

Interestingly, the opposition that so viciously attacked Trump during his presidency is today resorting to the narrative used by the former US president when he lost the election to Joe Biden. Because what else is said today about the possibility of rigging the election, if not to lay the foundations for the “Polish attack on the Capitol”? And the situation in Poland is so tense that a spark is enough for the crowd to rush to the Sejm. Unfortunately, such a scenario cannot be ruled out. Some of the opposition may be convinced that reaching such a solution is their last resort. Let’s imagine a situation where several recordings with an unclear situation regarding the counting of votes appear on the Internet, which is used by the opposition and calls citizens to the streets under the slogan “election fraud”. Then it won’t be a tragedy.

But the ruling party also has its role in dispelling doubts about the amendments to the Electoral Act. Poles have the right to doubt, as certain decisions are made several months before the elections. Do politicians want to hide the matches or do they decide to set fire to everything? If only it wasn’t too late.