Will Trzaskowski be unable to run for a third time? Poles on the rule change

At the beginning of July, the Polish People's Party (PSL) submitted a bill to the Sejm that abolishes the rule that a commune head, mayor or city president can only serve for two terms.

Let us recall that the Law and Justice party introduced two-term mandates for commune heads, mayors, and presidents before the local elections in 2018. The amendment to the Electoral Code introduced at the time also extended the term of local governments from 4 to 5 years.

The changes introduced by the previous government mean that in the next local elections (which are scheduled for spring 2029), the following candidates will not be able to run for another term: Mayor of Łódź Hanna Zdanowska, Mayor of Gdańsk Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, Mayor of Poznań Jacek Jaśkowiak, and Mayor of Warsaw Rafał Trzaskowski.

The Polish People's Party (PSL) wants to restore the pre-2018 rules, which allowed mayors to run for re-election as many times as they wanted. PSL politicians argue that a two-term mandate is harmful because it eliminates good municipal managers who could still serve another term. They also point out that during their second term, mayors, or city presidents do not focus on long-term decisions, but instead manage more ad hoc.

" No more two-term elections. No more restrictions on running for various representative bodies, because it was our predecessors from PiS who blocked and limited self-government, and we are restoring self-government, " said PSL president Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz at the end of June.

The PSL's idea, however, has little chance of being implemented, as it fails to generate enthusiasm within the coalition itself. The Left, as well as Poland 2050, a recent ally of the Polish People's Party (PSL), oppose a return to the old principles. The Civic Coalition (KO) is also divided on this issue.

Abolition of the two-term rule? Poles don't want change.

What do Poles think about this? A SW Research poll for "Wprost" shows that most of us do not want to abolish the two-term rule.

When asked: "Are you in favor of limiting the term of office to two for commune heads, mayors, and city presidents remaining in force?", 64.1% of respondents responded affirmatively. 16.4% of respondents expressed the opposite opinion, and one in five (19.5%) had no opinion on the matter.

The survey shows that the majority of respondents who do not want changes are those from cities with 100,000 to 200,000 inhabitants (71%), as well as: