Polish People's Party
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| Polish People's Party Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe |
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| Leader | Waldemar Pawlak |
| Founded | 5 May 1990 |
| Headquarters | ul. Grzybowska 4, 00-131 Warsaw |
| Ideology | Agrarianism Christian democracy Social conservatism |
| Political position | Centre |
| European affiliation | European People's Party |
| European Parliament Group | European People's Party |
| Official colours | Green |
| Sejm |
28 / 460
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| Senate |
2 / 100
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| European Parliament |
3 / 50
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| Website | |
| www.psl.pl | |
| Politics of Poland Political parties Elections |
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The Polish People's Party (Polish: Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe, abbreviated to PSL (traditionally translated as Polish Peasants' Party), is a centrist, agrarian, and Christian democratic political party in Poland. It currently has 31 members of the Sejm, one member of the Senate, and three Members of the European Parliament. It is the junior partner in a coalition with Civic Platform.
The party was formed in 1990. Originally a left-wing party, the PSL formed a coalition with the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) after winning 132 seats in the Sejm at the 1993 election, with PSL leader Waldemar Pawlak as Prime Minister until 1995. The party fell to 27 at the next election, and moved towards the centre at the end of the 1990s. In 2001, the party re-entered a coalition with the SLD, but withdrew in 2003. After the 2007 election, the PSL entered a coalition with the centre-right Civic Platform.
The party's name traces its tradition to an agrarian party in Austro-Hungarian-controlled Galician Poland, which sent MPs to the parliament in Vienna.
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[edit] History
[edit] Before 1945
After Poland regained independence with the end of the World War I in 1918, the party merged with agrarian groups from territories previously occupied by Imperial Russia and formed the first PSL led by Wincenty Witos, becoming one of the most important political parties in the Second Polish Republic until it was removed by the Sanacja regime (see also People's Party).
During this time there were two parties using the term "PSL": Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe Piast and Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe Wyzwolenie. During World War II, PSL took part in forming the Polish government in exile.
[edit] Under communist regime
After the war the leader of PSL, Stanislaw Mikolajczyk, returned to Soviet occupied Poland, hoping to recreate the party structures and create anti-communist opposition.[citation needed] To prevent this, the Soviet-controlled communist government formed a puppet PSL-Piast[citation needed] and, after rigging an important referendum, forced the real PSL to unite with it,[citation needed] forming United People's Party — a satellite of the Communist Party.[citation needed] Mikolajczyk was soon forced to flee the country into political exile.[citation needed]
[edit] After the fall of the regime
Around the time of the fall of communism several PSLs were recreated, including: Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe - Porozumienie Ludowe, Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe - Odrodzenie, and Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe (Wilanów faction). In 1989 they merged into one and took part in forming the first postwar noncommunist government in Poland with the Solidarity grouping, and in 1990 changed its name to PSL.
It originally remained on the left of Polish politics in the 1990s, entering into coalitions with the postcommunist Democratic Left Alliance. However, in the 2001 parliamentary elections PSL received 9% of votes and formed a coalition with the Democratic Left Alliance, an alliance which later broke down. Since then PSL has moved towards more centrist and conservative policies.
[edit] After 2004
The party ran in the 2004 European Parliament election as part of the European People's Party (EPP) and received 6% of the vote, giving it 4 of 54 Polish seats in the European Parliament. In the 2005 general election the party received 7% of votes, giving it 25 seats in the Sejm and 2 in the Senate. In the 2007 parliamentary elections the party placed fourth, with 8.93% of the vote and 31 out of 460 seats, and entered into a governing coalition with the victor, the centrist-conservative Civic Platform (Platforma Obywatelska).
[edit] Current situation
In European parliament elections PSL received 7,01 % of votes in 2009.
In 2011 national parliamentary election Polish People's Party received 8.36% votes which gave them 28 seats in the Sejm and 2 mandates in the Senate.[1]
[edit] Ideology
The party's platform is strongly based around agrarianism. Economically, the party advocates state interventionism (especially in agriculture), and "slower privatization" (although it is not against privatization). On social and ethical issues, PSL opposes abortion, same-sex marriage/civil unions, soft drug decriminalization, euthanasia and death penalty. It also supports mandatory public (state) education and publicly funded health care.
[edit] Leadership
Chairman: Roman Bartoszcze (1990–1991), Waldemar Pawlak (1991–1997), Jarosław Kalinowski (1997–2004), Janusz Wojciechowski (2004–2005), Waldemar Pawlak (2005–...)
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Elections 2011 - Election results" (in English). National Electoral Commission. http://wybory2011.pkw.gov.pl/wsw/en/000000.html. Retrieved 2011-11-20.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe |
- Official website
- Official page of PSL on the European People's Party website
- Official news service of the Polish People's Party (Polish)
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