Karol Nawrocki takes office as president. One thing may worry local government officials.

• If Karol Nawrocki represents the same agenda and program for local government as Law and Justice did when it was in power, this does not bode well for decentralization and strengthening the position of local governments, believes sociologist Dr. Adam Gendźwiłł, a professor at the University of Warsaw.
• In his opinion, the chances of abolishing the two-term rule for commune heads, mayors and presidents have now decreased to almost zero.
• The scientist emphasizes, however, that in the Polish system, the government bears the main responsibility for the relations between the central government and local governments, and most decisions regarding the directions of local government development (e.g. pro-climate) lie with local authorities.

PortalSamorzadowy.pl: What might change for local governments under the new president? Will he limit himself to not signing bills, or will he become more involved—as some analysts predict—in efforts to return the Law and Justice party to power?

"It's difficult to say what the vision of Nawrocki's presidency will be; of course, that's still unknown. We'll likely observe this in the first few months. However, I would maintain that in the Polish political system, the government rules, and it bears primary responsibility for the relationship between the central government and local governments. It is the government that sets the agenda for the Joint Commission and decides on the mechanisms for financing local governments."

The government quickly managed to amend the Local Government Income Act . Although it is fraught with uncertainty, it has temporarily improved the financial conditions of local governments and made local government revenues independent of arbitrary government decisions, such as the introduction of new tax breaks. This is a significant systemic change, one I wouldn't expect to reverse.

However, I think that if Karol Nawrocki represents the same agenda and program for local government as Law and Justice previously represented, it doesn't bode well for decentralization and the strengthening of local governments. It may instead lead to greater centralization.

There are issues that the local government community is waiting for to be resolved. Some have been announced by the government, others are still being discussed. I'm referring to, among others, further reforms of local government finances and the two-term mandate system, introduced by the previous government in 2018.

"If we're talking about the local government agenda, I think the chances of eliminating term limits for commune heads, mayors, and city presidents are diminishing, probably to zero. This was, after all, a flagship change introduced and later defended by Law and Justice."

Not only can I not imagine a parliamentary majority voting for this, regardless of the outcome of the presidential election – because both the Left and Poland 2050 were skeptical of this change, and they would need a majority to abolish this limit – but I also cannot imagine Karol Nawrocki signing an amendment to the Electoral Code in this regard.

Besides, in my opinion, this isn't the key or most important issue facing Polish local government. It's been talked about a lot because it was placed quite high on the agenda by corporations and local government associations. In this situation, it's rather faded into the background.

During Karol Nawrocki's campaign, themes such as opposition to the Green Deal and pro-climate solutions emerged. The new president spoke of "eco-terror" and "eco-madness." This direction of development, included in the European agenda, is being implemented by local governments through investments in renewable energy sources and the creation of clean air zones in cities, for example. Do you think that Karol Nawrocki might slow down such changes?

- I think that as far as central legislation and statutory changes are concerned, Karol Nawrocki will be the person who will participate in this decision-making process, because he will have the right of veto.

And he may probably veto more progressive changes regarding climate and nature conservation under the pretext of “eco-terror.”

I think, however, that the so-called Green Deal in the form in which it was adopted by the Morawiecki government is being dismantled – due to what is happening internationally, without any connection to the election results in Poland.

There's significant scope for local governments to make autonomous decisions in this matter. We can continue to see further initiatives and changes here. I believe there's scope for implementing changes like clean transport zones, biogas plants, and energy clusters, to the extent that they fall within the purview of local governments. The mandate that local governments have stems from direct elections, and local governments can exercise it.