In an unexpected result, at least as far as the mainstream press was concerned, conservative Karol Nawrocki won Poland's presidential election on Sunday. Liberal Rafal Trzaskowski initially claimed victory after the publication of exit polling showing him winning, but was forced to concede defeat Monday morning. 

Nawrocki took 50.89% of the vote against Trzaskowski. 

Nationalist opposition candidate Karol Nawrocki narrowly won Poland's presidential election, results showed on Monday, delivering a big blow to the centrist government's efforts to cement Warsaw's pro-European orientation.

In a victory for European conservatives inspired by U.S. President Donald Trump, Nawrocki secured 50.89% of the vote, election commission data showed. The outcome presages more political gridlock as he is likely to use his presidential veto to thwart Prime Minister Donald Tusk's liberal policy agenda.

A member of the Law and Justice Party, Nawrocki's veto power will serve as a bulwark against left-wing Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who took power 18 months ago. 

2023 Election Analysis: Polish Voters Just Nuked Themselves

Tusk and his Civic Coalition have sought to push Poland further under the thumb of the European Union, including making the country subject to Brussels' left-wing "Green" agenda. Abortion was also a major driver in the 2023 election, with younger women voting in large numbers, apparently more concerned about being able to terminate their pregnancies than the well-being of their nation. 

On immigration, Tusk had recently made a push to tighten up asylum rules in an attempt to appeal to right-wing voters. His Jekyll and Hyde approach with the European Union wasn't convincing, though. Poland's strict immigration policies and low crime rates have long been in sharp contrast to Western Europe, and pledging to protect that is something the new president-elect capitalized on. Nawrocki will now officially withdraw from the EU "pro-migration" pact, which has led to such chaos in other European nations. 

Nawrocki, 42, a newcomer to politics who previously ran a national remembrance institute, campaigned on a promise to ensure economic and social policies favour Poles over other nationalities, including refugees from neighbouring Ukraine.

He said he would protect Poland's sovereignty and criticised what he said was excessive interference in the country's affairs from Brussels.

One of the major factors of this result is that Nawrocki will have the power to veto any budget the Tusk-led Parliament sends to him. That could lead to paralysis and a snap election sooner rather than later. Nawrocki's win is just one step in the plan for the conservatives to regain power, and the red flags for Tusk are piling up. 

Practically, this represents a major blow to the European Union's increasing influence in Poland, and accusations that Nawrocki is "pro-Russia" and a "fascist" are already being made. In reality, he's wanted by the Russian Federation for his decommunization efforts, and while he is currently against Ukraine joining the EU, his precondition is acknowledgment of the genocide of Poles from 1943-1945. 

Regardless, Polish voters experienced what less than two years of left-wing governance produced, and they didn't like the results. Gridlock is better than becoming a vassal state of Brussels. 

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