Trump Lifts Polish President --- U.S. leader's support helps Karol Nawrocki, who was an obscure historian before bid

 

"WARSAW -- When the Law and Justice Party first picked Karol Nawrocki as its presidential candidate six months ago, most Polish voters didn't know who he was.

 

The historian-turned-politician sought to burnish his credentials by staking out conservative policies and capitalizing on fatigue over the Ukraine conflict. But he got what was perhaps his biggest boost from more than 4,000 miles away, when President Trump gave him a nod of approval.

 

The election saw the largest turnout by Polish voters in a presidential race since the country cast off Communism in 1989.

 

Nawrocki won with 50.89% of votes cast.

 

 

The backing of the Trump administration might not have been the deciding factor in catapulting Nawrocki to the presidency, but it gave him an edge in a tight race. As Trump-styled conservatism has faltered in other recent elections such as in Canada, Australia and Romania, it found fertile ground in Poland, and helped Nawrocki as he tried to establish a political identity.

 

Many voters used the election to voice dissatisfaction with the current ruling coalition, headed by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, which has struggled to deal with rising prices and make good on the campaign promises that got it elected in 2023.

 

But Nawrocki, who won by fewer than 400,000 votes, benefited from an effort by the Law and Justice Party to strengthen ties with the U.S. and Trump.

 

For most of Nawrocki's career he was a historian working in Polish state museums and institutes. He sought to capitalize on his experience as an amateur boxer to cultivate an image as a tough politician. But in a survey conducted shortly after he was tapped by Law and Justice for the race, only 39% of respondents knew who he was.

 

He staked out positions on the right as he established his political image, calling for the criminalization of abortion and opposing same-sex unions.

 

When Poland's most popular right-wing antiestablishment party, Konfederacja, was eliminated in the first round of voting, Nawrocki moved swiftly to sign up to a platform of party objectives that included not sending Polish troops to Ukraine and keeping Kyiv out of NATO.

 

His support from Washington gave him a new level of credibility. When the Conservative Political Action Conference, a U.S.-based conservative advocacy group, had its first meeting in Warsaw last week, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said Nawrocki needed to be Poland's next president.

 

The same day the House Committee on Foreign Affairs claimed without giving proof that Nawrocki's opponent, Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski, could be benefiting from illegal funds, and implied the EU was staying quiet about it because it benefited its interests. Trzaskowki has denied illicit financing.

 

The most important show of support was from Trump. After a meeting between Trump and Nawrocki in the Oval Office, the White House released photos of them smiling. "The photo with Trump was the most important for Nawrocki -- to make him look credible," said Milan Nic, a senior research fellow at the German Council on Foreign Relations.

 

Many in Poland see Washington as its most important historical ally -- from President Woodrow Wilson's advocating the creation of a Polish state after World War I to Ronald Reagan's support for Poland's Solidarity movement that freed the country from communism's stranglehold.

 

The importance of Trump's influence comes as Poles worry whether America's security blanket will continue to extend over Europe. Poland sees its ties with Washington as an existential issue.

 

"There is an understanding in Poland's DNA that the U.S. was there at its most pivotal moments so there's a different type of respect Poles have for the U.S.," said Pawel Chudzicki, head of the Washington office of Miller Canfield Paddock and Stone law firm, which represented the Polish Defense Ministry under the previous Law and Justice government.” [1]

 

1. World News: Trump Lifts Polish President --- U.S. leader's support helps Karol Nawrocki, who was an obscure historian before bid. Grove, Thomas.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 03 June 2025: A7.