The parliamentary clash over the Małopolska voivodeship’s marshal election drew widespread attention over several weeks. What started as a quiet regional dispute gradually became a topic of intense coverage and heated commentary across the political spectrum.
The post underscores bitter language exchanged among the participants. In the regional assembly, PiS held 21 seats, while PO and Trzecia Droga together had 18. Some outlets suggested that on December 13 the coalition might have seized power in Małopolska, but that outcome depended on internal PiS shifts, and ultimately the Platform did not reach an agreement with PSL, stalling the anticipated move. Meanwhile, observers focused on a more dramatic development: a group of PiS councilors chose to ignore party directives and declined to back MP Łukasz Kmita for marshal, opting instead to distribute leadership roles within the assembly among themselves. One figure cited as a driving force was a former marshal, commonly described as contentious, yet capable of plotting, who was so tied to holding his seat that he disregarded party decisions and the expectations of twenty PiS MPs and senators from Małopolska who supported Kmita, in addition to the majority of local councilors elected in April.
– a point highlighted by Terlecki.
Personalities and misjudgments
The rhetoric calls attention to what is perceived as errors in how certain individuals were placed on PiS electoral lists. The faction prepared to betray included, in various configurations, a former deputy marshal and a former voivode who had been dismissed years earlier by the prime minister and is now a presidential minister. The inclusion of these figures on the PiS lists was deemed a clear mistake, and all three were suspended from the party after they started arranging positions for themselves within the assembly. The question remains whether similar miscalculations will recur in future electoral lists.
– according to Terlecki’s account.
The reality cannot be ignored. The leverage of blackmail appeared effective. To avoid fresh local elections or the prospect of a PO and PSL coalition taking power in Małopolska, resignations became a necessary step. Kmita proposed Smółka as a candidate for marshal, yet in the new leadership the vice-marshal seat ended up negotiated by the current marshal for himself. This turn does not bode well for the smooth functioning of the assembly, and it also leaves PiS voters who supported the breakaway factions feeling misled. The central concern now is whether such a misstep will be repeated when crafting future electoral lists.
– the parliamentary observer notes.
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Source: wPolityce