The Polish Supreme Court has received 56 recount requests, the deadline for the lodging of which was midnight Tuesday, October 22. The governing Law and Justice party has demanded a recount in 6 districts, two of which were Senate districts. The largest opposition party, Civic Platform, filed two requests. As a result of the elections, Law and Justice lost its majority in the upper chamber. In one district the opposition candidate won by some 300 votes with thousands of votes having been declared invalid. Opposition leader Grzegorz Schetyna hopes that opposing the recounts will stop the Supreme Court from ordering them and save his job, since following the opposition’s electoral loss, many are calling for his head. From the Sejm, Aleksandra Zarzycka reports.
The Law and Justice party have filed 6 motions to the Supreme Court, asking for a recount of the votes to the Senate, where the ruling party lost its majority by a small margin. According to opposition politicians, the ruling party wants to undermine the outcome of the elections, while the Law and Justice politicians point out, that the Civic Platform itself filed three electoral protests. The leader of the Civic Platform, Grzegorz Schetyna stated yesterday that the work of the judges of the Supreme Court should be overseen by international observers. Today, the spokesman of the Supreme Court described the legal motions filed by the Law and Justice as lacking in concrete arguments, at the same time criticising Schetyna’s idea of the need for international control.
GRZEGORZ SCHETYNA, LEADER OF THE CIVIC PLATFORM: – “They asked about the next steps in the electoral process, which because of Law and Justice hasn’t yet ended. They asked what are the consequences of such actions and if democracy and the rule of law in Poland are threatened.”
KRZYSZTOF SOBOLEWSKI, HEAD OF THE LAW AND JUSTICE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: – ” Once again, they seek foreign help, nothing has changed. Four years have passed, and we’re having deja vu – the opposition lost the parliamentary elections, so they’re seeking aid from abroad. It looks like they haven’t learned anything during these four years. “