In November, serious changes are planned within Civic Platform (PO). According to media reports, during the party congress Rafał Trzaskowski will cease to serve as PO’s vice-chairman. However, the Mayor of Warsaw will not be the only prominent politician to lose his current position. Could this be an internal rift? Or perhaps the consequences of losing the presidential election?
The magazine Wprost reported today that major changes are brewing within Donald Tusk’s party.
What will happen to Trzaskowski?
According to journalist Joanna Miziołek, the planned reorganization of Civic Platform will include, among others, the Mayor of Warsaw and former PO presidential candidate Rafał Trzaskowski. The information about his departure from the post of party vice-chairman was confirmed to the weekly by one of the prime minister’s close associates, who revealed: “Rafał doesn’t want to fight for it. He withdrew from party activity after losing the election.”
The changes are also expected to affect other key figures in PO. One of them is the party’s secretary general, Marcin Kierwiński. As a source told the weekly, “Tusk told him that if he wants to return to the post of minister of internal affairs and administration, he will no longer remain secretary general.”
Wprost points out that by stripping Rafał Trzaskowski and Marcin Kierwiński of their positions, Donald Tusk is implementing his long-standing strategy of weakening internal party factions that could pose a threat to him.
In the context of these changes, it is impossible to overlook the recent conflict between Trzaskowski and Kierwiński, which occurred during a session of the Warsaw Council. This situation seriously undermined Trzaskowski’s position as mayor of the capital. According to the weekly, as head of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration, Kierwiński directly influenced city and district councilors to reject resolutions concerning a night-time alcohol ban – including one proposed by Trzaskowski himself. Moreover, he reportedly warned them of possible consequences should they decide otherwise. Such interference was met with negative reactions among members of Civic Platform.
As one PO politician told the weekly, “By allowing Kierwiński to outplay Rafał on the prohibition issue, Donald Tusk is kicking someone who is already down. This move was poorly received in the party. People believe that hitting Rafał is unnecessary, because he has already broken down after the election.”