Poland Postpones Presidential Election

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The leaders of the Law and Justice (PiS) party and Porozumienie, one of two parties propping up the PiS-dominated coalition, made the announcement on Wednesday night.

PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski and Porozumienie leader Jaroslaw Gowin said in a joint statement sent to the Polish Press Agency that they had come up with "a solution that will guarantee Poles the possibility of taking part in democratic elections".

"After the May 10 term passes and after the Supreme Court predictably confirms the invalidity of the elections, on account of them not taking place, the Speaker of the Sejm [lower house of parliament] will announce new presidential elections as soon as possible," they said.

"The elections organised by the National Electoral Commission will take place by postal vote, out of concern for the safety of Poles, taking into account the epidemiological situation." 

W jedności siła💪 Polska potrzebuje sprawnego rządu. I sprawnie przeprowadzonych wyborow. pic.twitter.com/npOB0W8kHL

— Jadwiga Emilewicz 💯🇵🇱 (@JEmilewicz) May 6, 2020

Under this scenario, rather than changing the date of the election — legally problematic without the declaration of a state of emergency, which PiS avoided — the government would simply do nothing to make the vote happen.

Poland's Supreme Court would then invalidate the election — since it did not take place — and the Speaker of the Sejm would declare a new date within two months. Elections would most likely happen during the summer, before Duda's term expires on August 6. 

PiS had been keen for the vote to take place because...