Political System of Poland and Elections

Ustrój polityczny Polski i wybory dr Maciej St. Zięba

Rzeczpospolita Polska • Rzeczpospolita (czyli Rzecz Publiczna, Dobro Wspólne; Republika, Wspólnota) Polska – nazwa używana co najmniej od 1505 • I Rzeczpospolita (monarchia królów elekcyjnych, wybieranych przez parlament) – 1505-1795 (1569-1795: Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów – Polaków i Litwinów-Rusinów) • II Rzeczpospolita – 1918-1939 • PRL („Rzeczpospolita Ludowa”) 1945-89 • III Rzeczpospolita – 1989–do dziś

Ustrój Trzeciej Rzeczypospolitej • Ustrój parlamentarno-gabinetowy – rząd jest tworzony przez Premier (Prezesa Rady Ministrów) mianowanego przez Prezydenta RP na wniosek partii posiadającej większość w Sejmie (czy koalicji tworzącej większość). • Prezydent RP praktycznie nie ma żadnej władzy wykonawczej. • Rząd (Rada Ministrów, Gabinet) jest powoływany przez Premiera, ministrowie są mianowani przez Prezydenta zgodnie z wolą Premiera, oraz akceptowany przez Sejm (wotum zaufania). • Sejm może odwołać rząd (konstruktywne wotum nieufności, nieprzyjęcie budżetu państwa).

Prezydent Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej • Prezydent RP jest Głową Państwa, ma wszystkie najwyższe funkcje reprezentatywne, jest Strażnikiem Konstytucji, Naczelnym Dowódcą Sił Zbrojnych . • Prezydent akceptuje (podpisuje) wszystkie ustawy – ma prawo weta (które może być następnie odrzucone przez 3/5) lub skierowania do Trybunału Konstytucyjnego dla sprawdzenia zgodności z Konstytucją (decyzja ostateczna). • Posiada ograniczoną inicjatywę legislacyjną. • Jest wybierany bezpośrednio w głosowaniu powszechnym na 5-letnią kadencję. Może by raz wybrany ponownie. • Nie ma wiceprezydenta.

Parlament - 1 • Sejm (= „Zebranie”, „Zgromadzenie”) – do końca XVIII w. był to parlament trojga stanów (Izba Poselska, Senat i Król) • wg legend – działał od IX w. • potwierdzony w źródłach – od 1182 • Regularne wybory pośrednie co 2 lata – od 1492. • Sejm Walny (Zgromadzenie Zwykłe) spotykało się raz na rok na 6 tygodni. Sejm SkonfederowanyEkstraordynaryjny mógł pracować dłużej. • Konstytucja 3 Maja 1791 - reforma Sejmu

Parlament – 2 • 1945-1989 (PRL) – Sejm jednoizbowy • od 1989 – dwie izby Zgromadzenia Narodowego: • Sejm (izba niższa) – posłowie – 460 miejsc – podstawowe uprawnienia legislacyjne (prawodawcze, ustawodawcze). • Senat (izba wyższa) – 100 miejsc – funkcje legislacyjne wspomagające. • Wybierane razem, na kadencję 4-letnią, w wyborach bezpośrednich, powszechnych i proporcjonalnych. • Marszałek Sejmu (Przewodniczący Sejmu) – zastępuje Prezydenta RP w razie konieczności (śmierć, niemożliwość pełnienia funkcji, dymisja).

Central government and local government : 1 • Until 1989: Poland - a centralised state • Since 1990: process of decentralisation of competencies and creation of local governments (“self-government”) • 1990 - municipalities + provincial councils (seymiks) • 1999 - reorganisation of the division of the territory • counties and regions • state administration kept on the regional level • Poland continues being a unitary country

Self-government • The territorial division of the RP provides for the decentralization of the public authorities (Art.15, No.1,The Constitution of the RP) • All the inhabitants of a basic territorial division unit form a self-governing collectivity by the force of law (Art.16,No.1) • The territorial self-government participates in the performance of public administration

Central government and local government : 2 • 1989: Poland - a centralised state • 49 provinces (voivodship - województwo) • state administration extending from the central level (the ministries) to municipalities • provinces (voivodship: województwo) and • their subsidiaries (district: rejon) • basic administrative units – municipalities (rural community: gmina, township: miasto i gmina; town/city: miasto) • hierarchical dependence of all units of territorial administration • fake elected bodies (councils)

Central government and local government : 3 • 1990: first decentralisation of competencies • reorganisation of the basic level - creation of self-governmental municipalities (communities) with elected bodies (municipal council - rada gminna, miejska) • the municipal board (zarząd) as well as the chief of the municipality (voyt - wójt, mayor - burmistrz, president of the city - prezydent miasta) elected by and from within the council; • rural and mixed municipalities are divided into villages, towns/cities may form hamlets, quarters and districts • special law on Warsaw (the capital city); • basic competencies given by default to the municipalities; • provincial councils (sejmik) - representing the municipalities - advisory bodies to the state administration in the province (voivod or governor);

Central government and local government : 4 • 1999: second decentralisation (1) • reorganisation of the division of the territory: abandon of 49 provinces (and their districts) and creation of 16 regions, called voivodships (województwo); • double administration on the regional level: • self-government (the regional council – sejmik,litt.: smaller convention or assembly; the voivodship board and the chief of the regional executive: marshal of the voivodship - marszałek województwa – different from the speaker!) – with a list of competencies given • state administration in the region – governor (voivod - wojewoda) with a list of competencies given

Central government and local government : 5 • 1999: second decentralisation (2) • (re)creation of the intermediary level of self-government territorial unit and administration - county (poviat - powiat) with a list of competencies given; • poviat council is electing the poviat board and its chief, the staroste (starosta) • altogether 379 counties created, out of which 314 land counties (powiat ziemski) and 65 urban counties (powiat grodzki), consisting of big cities (by now 2 urban counties dissolved, or rather united with the surrounding land county)

Central government and local government : 6 • Law on Direct Elections of the Chiefs of Municipalities (2002) • Law of on Civil Service (1996, replaced 1998, replaced 2006) • Law on State Cadre Reserve (2006)

Competencies - municipalities • All public affairs of local importance, not restricted by a law to the sole competency of another subject (Art.6, No.1, Law 1591/1990)

space management immobility property manage’nt environmental protection water management local roads, bridges etc. supply of energy sewers and waste removal public transportation health protection social help housing programmes co-operation with NGO’s public education culture (libraries, etc.) monument protection sports and tourism, recreation market places cemeteries parks and green areas fire and flood protection pro-family help (social, medical, legal help) and youth promotion of the municipality international co-operation promoting self-governance and civil society tasks transferred by state auth. order keeping etc. Municipalities - in particular

Counties - competencies • Public services of the supra-local importance, prescribed by the laws (Art.2, No.1, Law 1592/1998) • The task of the counties cannot disturb the competencies or tasks of the municipalities (Art. 4, No. 6) • Urban counties = cities (municipalities) with the rights of counties

public education health promotion & protection social help pro-family services aid to handicapped public transport and roads culture and monument protection cartography, geodesy, cadaster architecture and building water management nature protection forestry, fishing, agriculture public order and security crisis prevention unemployment prevention and fighting consumer protection civil defense local promotion co-operation with NGO’s maintenance of public utility buildings maintenance of fire brigades, local police, and county inspections tasks transferred by the state Counties - in the following domains

Voivodship - competencies • Public services and tasks of regional importance, prescribed by the laws and not restricted to the exclusive competence of the organs of state administration (Art. 2. No. 2, Law 1590/1998) • The competencies of the voivodship do not disturb the independence of the municipalities and counties, nor do they form any supervision above them (Art. 4).

Drafting a regional development strategy, in order to: - maintain and enhance the national, cultural and civic consciousness of the population and regional identity - stimulate economic activity, - raise the competitiveness and innovativeness of the economy of the region, - maintain the cultural and natural heritage (sustainable development), - develop and keep the spatial order. Implementing a policy of regional development through: developing labour market, creating and keeping technical and social infrastructure, finding and attracting external financial resources, especially from the EU and state budget, improving the level of general education and higher education, stimulating culture, recreation, research, innovation, promotion of the region’s assets and potentials. Voivodship - prescribed tasks

And all that through: co-operation with territorial self-government units of its area, co-operation with the state administration in the region, co-operation with economic chambers, employers’ and employees organisations, churches, NGO’s, research institutions and universities, neighbouring regions, foreign regions and international organisations, Other tasks: education (artistic, higher), culture, sports, tourism, health care (hospitals), social help and family policy, modernisation of rural areas, public transportation and networks of roads, environmental protection, spatial planning consumer protection public order, fighting unemployment. Voivodship - prescribed tasks

Voivod (Governor) • Representative of the Council of Ministers in the region • Chief of all consolidated special state administrations (inspections, guards etc.) and co-ordinator of non-consolidated state administrations in the region • Maintenance of order within the region, administering all border-crossing points • Supervising organ for self-government units • Second level (revocatory) organ within the procedures of administrative decisions • Representative of the Treasury for state owned property

Elections in Poland • Active - 18 years • Passive • Sejm - 21 years • Senat - 30 years • Presidential - 35 years • Self-government - 18 years • European Parliament - 21 years • Law on elections - Ordynacja wyborcza

Elections - Sejm (Parliament, lower chamber) • One round multiple-winner method • Ballots with several party or committee lists, voter may vote for just one candidate • Country-wide threshold of 4 % support for parties, 8% for coalitions • Party-list proportional method of tallying - d’Hondt method of highest averages - the votes obtained by candidates from the same parties are added and redistributed (via division by natural numbers)

Parliamentary Clubs and Groups

Elections - Senate • Single round multiple-winner majoritarian system • Electoral districts are apportioned plural seats (usually 2) but voter may vote for one candidate only • Tallying by plurality (or relative majority, called “first past the post”, “winners take all”)

Elections - Presidential and Mayors’ • Single round or two rounds single-winner system • Top-two runoff voting if no majority in the first round.

Elections - Self-government councils • Small municipalities (up to 20,000 inh.) - bloc voting (plurality-at-large voting). Bullets may be arranged by party lists or not. • Bigger municipalities, counties and regions - system identical to that used for Sejm, except that untill 2002 the Sainte-Laguë method of tallying was used (division by odd numbes, instead of that by natural numbers) • Additional possibility - parties (committees) may form blocks in order to pass the support threshold criterion, which influences also the redistribution of seats, but does not oblige the parties to form a coalition afterwards.

Elections - county and region board members/chiefs • Indirect - by the local / regional deputies (council members) • May be from within or outside of the group of council members

Elections - hamlets/district/quarter councils • No party lists on bullets. • Single round majoritarian voting. • The city (town) makes its own regulation of voting with additional conditions, e.g. by setting a participation threshold.

Elections - village chiefs (sołtys) • The only type of elections where people elect the chief while gathered during a village meeting. • Multiple round plurality voting - exhaustive runoff election (no candidates eliminated, voting repeated until there is a majority).

links • http://www.sejm.gov.pl/prawo/konst/angielski/kon1.htm - The Constitution of Poland • http://ec.europa.eu/comm/eurostat/ramon/nuts/introannex_regions_en.html - NUTS • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_parliamentary_election,_2005.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_parliamentary_election,_2007 • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_presidential_election,_2005.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_local_elections,_2006.html • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_parliament_election,_2004_(Poland).html

John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin History of Philosophy Department mszieba@kul.lublin.pl tel. (+48-81) 445-40-42 fax: 445-41-65 Office of the Voivod of Lublin Department for Management of European Funds euroanalizy@uw.lublin.pl tel. (+48-81) 74-24-522 fax: 74-24-316 Thank youDr Maciej St. Zięba

Political System of Poland and Elections