Polish People's Party

Polish People's Party
Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe
Leader Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz
Founded 5 May 1990
Headquarters ul. Kopernika 36/40, 00-924 Warsaw
Membership (2015) 140,000[1]
Ideology Agrarianism
Christian democracy
Green conservatism
Decentralisation
Protectionism
Political position Centre[2]
European affiliation European People's Party
European Parliament group European People's Party
Colours Green
Sejm
15 / 460

[3]

Senate
0 / 100
European Parliament
4 / 51
Regional assemblies
153 / 555
Website
www.psl.pl

The Polish People's Party (Polish: Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe, abbreviated to PSL (traditionally translated as Polish Peasants' Party), often shortened to ludowcy ('the populars') is an agrarian[4][5][6] and Christian democratic[6][7] political party in Poland. It has 16 members of the Sejm and four Members of the European Parliament. It was the junior partner in a coalition with Civic Platform. It is a member of the European People's Party and the European People's Party group in the European Parliament.

The party was formed in 1990 as a left-wing party. The PSL formed a coalition with the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) after winning 132 seats in the Sejm at the 1993 election, with PSL leader Waldemar Pawlak as Prime Minister until 1995. The party fell to 27 at the next election, and moved towards the centre at the end of the 1990s. In 2001, the party re-entered a coalition with the SLD, but withdrew in 2003. After the 2007 election, the PSL entered a coalition with the centre-right Civic Platform (PO).

The party's name traces its tradition to an agrarian party in Austro-Hungarian-controlled Galician Poland, which sent MPs to the parliament in Vienna. Until the 2014 local election, the PSL formed self-government coalition in fifteen to sixteen regional assemblies.

History

Before 1945

After Poland regained independence with the end of the World War I in 1918, the party merged with agrarian groups from territories that had been occupied by Imperial Russia and formed the first PSL led by Wincenty Witos. It was one of the most important political parties in the Second Polish Republic until it was removed by the Sanacja regime (see also People's Party).

During this time there were two parties using the term "Polish People's Party": Polish People's Party "Piast" and Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie". During World War II, PSL took part in forming the Polish government in exile.

Under the communist regime

Support for the PSL by region

After the war, Stanisław Mikołajczyk, a PSL leader who had been Prime Minister of the Polish government in exile, returned to communist-dominated Poland, where he joined the provisional government and rebuilt PSL. The party hoped to win the Yalta Conference-mandated elections and help establish a parliamentary system in Poland. The communists formed a rival peasant party allied with them. The 1947 parliamentary election was heavily rigged, with the communist-controlled bloc claiming to have won 80 percent of the vote. Many neutral observers believe the PSL would have won the election had it been conducted fairly.

Mikołajczyk was soon compelled to flee Poland for his life. The communists then forced the remains of Mikołajczyk's PSL to unite with the pro-communist People's Party to form the United People's Party. The ZSL was a governing partner in the ruling coalition.[8]

After the fall of the regime

Seat of the Polish People's Party on Kopernika Street

Around the time of the fall of communism several PSLs were recreated, including: Porozumienie Ludowe, Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe - Odrodzenie, and Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe (Wilanów faction). In 1989 most merged into one party and took part in forming the first postwar noncommunist government in Poland with the Solidarity grouping, and in 1990 changed its name to PSL.

It remained on the left of Polish politics in the 1990s, entering into coalitions with the postcommunist Democratic Left Alliance. However, in the 2001 parliamentary elections PSL received 9% of votes and formed a coalition with the Democratic Left Alliance, an alliance which later broke down. Since then PSL has moved towards more centrist and conservative policies.

After 2004

The party ran in the 2004 European Parliament election as part of the European People's Party (EPP) and received 6% of the vote, giving it 4 of 54 Polish seats in the European Parliament. In the 2005 general election the party received 7% of votes, giving it 25 seats in the Sejm and 2 in the Senate. In the 2007 parliamentary elections the party placed fourth, with 8.93% of the vote and 31 out of 460 seats, and entered into a governing coalition with the victor, the center-right conservative Civic Platform (Platforma Obywatelska).

Current situation

In European parliament elections PSL received 7.01% of votes in 2009.

In 2011 national parliamentary election Polish People's Party received 8.36% votes which gave them 28 seats in the Sejm and 2 mandates in the Senate.[9]

At the 2015 parliamentary election, the PSL dropped to 5.13 percent of the vote, just barely over the 5 percent threshold. With 16 seats, it is the smallest of the five factions in the Sejm.[10]

Ideology

The party's platform is strongly based on agrarianism. The party advocates economic protectionism by the state (especially in agriculture), and "slower privatization" (although it is not against privatization). On social and ethical issues, PSL opposes abortion, same-sex marriage/civil unions, soft drug decriminalization, euthanasia and death penalty. It also supports mandatory public (state) education and publicly funded health care. The party has increasingly shifted its focus towards environmental protection and decentralisation of governmental authority.

Election results

Support

Party traditionally representing farmers, peasants and rural voters generally. Voters are generally more conservative than voters of Civic Platform.
Regionally, it has more support in western parts of country. The party has less support in larger cities and mining areas of the Silesian Voivodeship

Sejm

Election year # of
votes		 % of
vote		 # of
overall seats won		 +/– Govt?
1989[11] 16.5 (#3)
76 / 460
 Decrease 41 Coalition
1991 972,952 8.7 (#5)
48 / 460
 Decrease 28 Government Support
1993 2,124,367 15.4 (#2)
132 / 460
 Increase 84 Coalition
1997 956,184 7.3 (#4)
27 / 460
 Decrease 105 Opposition
2001 1,168,659 9.0 (#5)
42 / 460
 Increase 15 Coalition
2005 821,656 7.0 (#6)
25 / 460
 Decrease 17 Opposition
2007 1,437,638 8.9 (#4)
31 / 460
 Increase 6 Coalition
2011 1,201,628 8.4 (#4)
28 / 460
 Decrease 3 Coalition
2015 779,875 5.1 (#6)
16 / 460
 Decrease 12 Opposition

Senate

Election year # of
overall seats won		 +/–
1991
7 / 100
 Increase 4
1993
36 / 100
 Increase 29
1997
3 / 100
 Decrease 33
2001
4 / 100
 Increase 1
2005
2 / 100
 Decrease 2
2007
0 / 100
 Decrease 2
2011
2 / 100
 Increase 2
2015
1 / 100
 Decrease 1

Presidential

Election year Candidate 1st round 2nd round
# of overall votes % of overall vote # of overall votes % of overall vote
1990 Roman Bartoszcze 1,176,175 7.2 (#5)
1995 Waldemar Pawlak 770,419 4.3 (#5)
2000 Jarosław Kalinowski 1,047,949 6.0 (#4)
2005 Jarosław Kalinowski 269,316 1.8 (#5)
2010 Waldemar Pawlak 294,273 1.8 (#5)
2015 Adam Jarubas 238,761 1.6 (#6)

Regional assemblies

Election year % of
vote		 # of
overall seats won		 +/–
1998 15.1 (#3)
89 / 855
As part of the Social Alliance.
2002 10.8 (#5)
58 / 561
 Decrease 31
2006 13.2 (#4)
83 / 561
 Increase 25
2010 16.3 (#3)
93 / 561
 Increase 10
2014 23.9 (#3)
157 / 555
 Increase 64

European Parliament

Election year # of
votes		 % of
vote		 # of
overall seats won		 +/–
2004 386,340 6.3 (#7)
4 / 54
2009 516,146 7.0 (#4)
3 / 50
 Decrease 1
2014 480,846 6.8 (#5)
4 / 51
 Increase 1

Leadership

Chairman:

See also

References

  1. ↑ Skomra, Sławomir. "Jak wstąpić do PiS? Coraz więcej chętnych by stać się członkiem partii rządzącej". Kurier Lubelski. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  2. ↑ https://books.google.pl/books?id=hmtuqFnuDZwC&pg=PA188&lpg=PA188&dq=psl+centrist&source=bl&ots=xDosOyuDGA&sig=zVnyIVviWImT9a8lUzLggBwfaCg&hl=pl&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi2oeLBlKzVAhUGVRQKHUuxDBEQ6AEIPTAD#v=onepage&q=psl%20centrist&f=false
  3. ↑ http://sejm.gov.pl/Sejm7.nsf/kluby.xsp
  4. ↑ Jennifer Lees-Marshment (2 July 2009). Political Marketing: Principles and Applications. Routledge. p. 104. ISBN 978-1-134-08411-1.
  5. ↑ Paul G. Lewis (2000). Political Parties in Post-Communist Eastern Europe. Routledge. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-415-20182-7. Retrieved 6 February 2013.
  6. 1 2 Igor Guardiancich (21 August 2012). Pension Reforms in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe: From Post-Socialist Transition to the Global Financial Crisis. Routledge. p. 145. ISBN 978-1-136-22595-6.
  7. ↑ José Magone (26 August 2010). Contemporary European Politics: A Comparative Introduction. Routledge. p. 457. ISBN 978-0-203-84639-1. Retrieved 19 July 2013.
  8. ↑ David Ost, Solidarity and the Politics of Anti-Politics, pp. 34-36, 1990 Philadelphia, Temple University Press, ISBN 0-87722-655-5
  9. ↑ "Elections 2011 - Election results". National Electoral Commission. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
  10. ↑ Hubert Tworzecki; Radosław Markowski (2015-11-03). "Did Poland just vote in an authoritarian government?". The Washington Post.
  11. ↑ as United People's Party

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