Clash between Tusk and Nawrocki over Poland's top court intensifies
Poland's government under Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Karol Nawrocki are locked in an escalating dispute over the Constitutional Tribunal ahead of the 2027 election. The European Commission has backed Tusk's position.
A political dispute over Poland's Constitutional Tribunal, the country's top court that reviews whether laws comply with the constitution, is intensifying ahead of the 2027 election. The two sides are Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Karol Nawrocki. Tusk's government presents the fight over the tribunal as an effort to restore the rule of law, while his opponents describe it as a coup.
President enters the court past protesters
On 31 October, around midnight, Nawrocki made his way through protesters and into the tribunal. The move was described as the latest escalation in his conflict with the prime minister.
Support from the European Commission
Tusk has vowed not to compromise in the showdown. The European Commission, the European Union's executive arm, backs him. Commissioner Michael McGrath told POLITICO: "Appointing the new judges lies within the power of the Sejm." The Sejm is the lower house of Poland's parliament.
Earlier clash over abortion
The court is not the only issue dividing the government and the president. On 20 October the government voted to ease abortion laws, a step seen as a challenge to the conservative president. Nawrocki is aligned with the party whose abortion clampdown triggered mass protests five years ago, and he could veto the government's bills.
Together, these disputes are shaping the battle lines ahead of Poland's next election, due in 2027.
