Law and Justice’s bill to change the electoral law to the European Parliament is in jeopardy after Andrzej Duda threatened to veto the bill.
The president also vocalizes his disapproval for the Supreme Court’s freezing of judiciary reform laws, calling the move “purely political.”
A group of smaller political organizations appealed to Duda, asking him to veto the bill. The president has 21 days to response. Duda favors them, as the reform would practically eliminate smaller political parties. The bill would effectively change the election threshold from 5 percent to 11 or 12. The president fears that the bill would damage the interests of Polish citizens.
“A part of Polish society will feel deprived of representation in the EU parliament,” he says in an interview for Dziennik Gazeta Prawna. “I as the president should hold up the rules which make democracy a reality.”
A part of Polish society will feel deprived of representation in the EU parliament
The new reform is meant to help PiS gain more influence in Brussels. Although it would also strengthen the oppositional Civic Platform, effectively creating a two-party system, it would cut out the smaller political groups. The gained support would probably be worth the criticism PiS would receive.
Asked whether Duda would prefer a two-party system, the president is certain that such an entity should arise organically. He argues, that there aren’t that many political groups in the Polish parliament in the first place.
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During the ongoing struggle with the Supreme Court (SN), the SN released a proclamation which effectively froze the government’s judiciary reforms. Members of the opposition, along with SN see the reforms as undemocratic and in conflict with the constitution.
Duda says that the reforms are in order. He adds, that the SN’s proclamation has no legal basis. He also slams the SN for pulling off what is not a legal, but political move which doesn’t benefit Polish society but only the SN judges.
