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Poland's Supreme Court orders partial vote recount in presidential election

13.06.2025 13:06
Poland’s Supreme Court has ordered a recount of ballots in 13 polling stations amid allegations of irregularities in the second round of the country’s presidential election.
Polands Supreme Court has ordered a partial recount in the presidential election after over 100 complaints alleged vote-counting errors.
Poland's Supreme Court has ordered a partial recount in the presidential election after over 100 complaints alleged vote-counting errors.Photo: PAP/Albert Zawada

The decision comes after more than 100 electoral complaints were filed, with some citing errors in vote tabulation, including the misallocation of votes between candidates.

In at least two cases, local election officials admitted that votes cast for pro-European, centrist Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski were mistakenly attributed to Karol Nawrocki, the conservative candidate backed by the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party.

The recount will take place in various Polish cities, including Kraków, Katowice and Tychy in the south, Gdańsk in the north, Mińsk Mazowiecki near the capital Warsaw, and Grudziądz in the north-central part of the country.

Other sites include Olesno and Strzelce Opolskie in the southwest, Tarnów in the southeast, Bielsko-Biała in the south, Kamienna Góra near the Czech border, and Brześć Kujawski in north-central Poland. 

The court said the review aims to determine whether the irregularities resulted from clerical errors or deliberate misconduct.

To establish the accurate number of valid votes cast for each candidate, Poland's Supreme Court has ordered that the recount be carried out through judicial assistance by the district courts.

The procedure follows a formal request from Prosecutor-General Adam Bodnar, who called for ballot inspections in several districts.

He said the review would help clarify whether inaccuracies in vote tallies could have affected the final outcome.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Friday that recounting votes in districts where irregularities or errors occurred was "the only reasonable course of action."

He told a news conference that in a democracy, election outcomes are determined not by the government but by independent institutions such as the Supreme Court, the electoral authority, and prosecutors.

He also said that he expected these bodies to "act decisively."

Poland's presidential runoff election took place on June 1, following a first round on May 18.

The Supreme Court must rule on the validity of the election by July 2.

The court’s Extraordinary Review and Public Affairs Chamber—a panel established by the previous government in 2018—is responsible for handling election appeals.

However, the chamber's legitimacy has been questioned by European courts and is contested by Poland's current ruling coalition.

The Court of Justice of the European Union has previously ruled that the chamber "does not have the status of an independent and impartial tribunal."

(mp/gs)

Source: PAP/X/@SN_RP_/@PremierRP/@Adbodnar


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