Headline Roundup • June 2nd, 2025
Trump Admin-Endorsed Conservative Nawrocki Wins Polish Presidential Election
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Conservative nationalist Karol Nawrocki won Poland’s presidential election on Sunday, narrowly defeating liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski.
The Details: Nawrocki, an independent who received endorsement from the populist conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, won the two-way race with 50.9% of the vote. Trzaskowski had declared victory immediately after voting ended, and the first exit poll showed him leading 50.3% to 49.7%, though Nawrocki warned it was too close to call.
For Context: PiS led Poland from 2015 to 2023, until incumbent Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s centrist coalition took over. Still, since 2023, Poland’s independent PiS-affiliated President Andrzej Duda has stood in the way of several of Tusk’s policy reforms. Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem endorsed Nawrocki at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Warsaw. On May 18 in Romania’s presidential election, liberal Bucharest mayor Nicușor Dan held off conservative populist candidate George Simion.
How the Media Covered It: Most outlets from the left and center mentioned Nawrocki’s ties to Trump prominently, whereas outlets from the right were less likely to do so. Many also framed the election as a referendum on Tusk’s current government. Washington Post (Lean Left bias) wrote, “Duda’s term ends this summer, and the race to replace him has been seen as a referendum on Tusk, whose popularity has suffered amid struggles to implement reforms.” BBC (Center) wrote, “Nawrocki is likely to continue to use his presidential power of veto to block Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk's pro-EU programme.” The Washington Examiner (Lean Right) offered a simplified version of Associated Press’ (Left) coverage that didn’t mention Trump or Tusk.
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Aleksandra Szmigiel/Reuters
A conservative nationalist has won Poland’s presidential race, further bolstering right-wing gains in Europe and dealing a blow to the centrist government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
Karol Nawrocki, a historian backed by the conservative Law and Justice party, defeated liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski 50.89 percent to 49.11 percent in Sunday’s vote, according to official results announced Monday morning. Nawrocki, 42, has led the country’s Institute of National Remembrance, a historical research organization, and had little prior political experience.
With all votes counted, right-wing historian Karol Nawrocki has been elected Poland's new president, the state electoral commission (PKW) said.
PKW said Nawrocki won 50.9% percent of the votes – ahead of Warsaw's liberal mayor Rafal Trzaskowski on 49.1% percent.
It's a sensational turnaround from the result of the first exit poll – published immediately after voting ended at 21:00 local time (19:00 GMT) on Sunday – that showed Trzaskowski winning on 50.3% to Nawrocki's 49.7%.
Karol Nawrocki, the right-wing candidate in Poland’s presidential runoff election, won on Sunday night and will be the country’s next president.
Nawrocki defeated Rafał Trzaskowski by the slimmest of margins, winning 50.89% of the vote. Trzaskowski, the liberal candidate and current mayor of Warsaw, received 49.11% of the vote, according to the Associated Press.
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