Donald Tusk must undo years of populist subversion in Poland
The prime minister has a tough job restoring democracy and judicial independence
THE HANDOVER was just as bitter as the years-long political brawl that preceded it. After losing an election in October, Poland’s hard-right Law and Justice (PiS) party finally ceded power on December 12th to a coalition headed by Donald Tusk, a veteran former prime minister. After PiS lost a vote of confidence in parliament, the party’s leader, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, took to the lectern to call Mr Tusk “a German agent”—a puerile insult PiS used throughout the campaign, referring to Mr Tusk’s German ancestry and his experience as president of the European Council.
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This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Return to the rule of law”
Europe December 16th 2023
From the December 16th 2023 edition
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