Civic Platform

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Template:Pp-protected Template:Short description Template:Use american english Template:About Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox political party The Civic Platform (Template:Langx, PO)<ref group=nb>The party was officially the Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland (Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej).</ref> was a centre-right liberal conservative political party in Poland. The party's most prominent leader was Donald Tusk, party chairman between 2003–2014 and 2021–2025.

It was formed in 2001 by splinter factions from the Solidarity Electoral Action, the Freedom Union and the Conservative People's Party, and it later placed second in the 2001 Polish parliamentary election. It remained at the opposition until the 2007 Polish parliamentary opposition, when it overtook Law and Justice, won 209 seats, and Tusk was elected as Prime Minister of Poland. Following the Smolensk air disaster in 2010, Bronisław Komorowski served as acting president of Poland and later won the 2010 Polish presidential election. Tusk continued to serve as prime minister and leader of Civic Platform until he resigned in 2014 to assume the post of the president of the European Council. The party was defeated in the 2015 Polish parliamentary and presidential elections. It placed second in the 2019 Polish parliamentary election, and its 2020 Polish presidential election candidate, Rafał Trzaskowski, won 49% of the popular vote in the second round and lost the election to Andrzej Duda.

Initially positioned as a Christian democratic party with strong economically liberal tendencies, it soon adopted liberal conservatism throughout the 2000s. During its time in power, it was aligned with more pragmatic and centrist views, and was characterized as a catch-all party. In the 2010s, the Civic Platform adopted more socially liberal policies, aligned itself with conservative liberalism and economic neoliberalism, and it has since been positioned in the centre-right. It has also strongly advocated for Poland's membership in the European Union and NATO. It was a member of the European People's Party.

The party headed an electoral alliance Civic Coalition, which was founded in 2018. Since its creation, it had shown strong electoral performances in Warsaw, the west, and the north of Poland. Since the 2000s, the Civic Platform had established itself as one of the dominant political parties in Poland. On 25 October 2025, the party merged into a new party called Civic Coalition, bearing the same name as the PO-led electoral coalition from 2018.

History

Establishment

The Civic Platform was founded in 2001 as economically liberal, Christian-democratic split from existing parties. Founders Andrzej Olechowski, Maciej Płażyński, and Donald Tusk were sometimes jokingly called "the Three Tenors" by Polish media and commentators. Olechowski and Płażyński left the party during the 2001–2005 parliamentary term, leaving Tusk as the sole remaining founder, and current party leader.

First elections

In the 2001 general election, the party secured 12.6% of the vote and 65 deputies in the Sejm, making it the largest opposition party to the government led by the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD). In the 2002 local elections, PO stood together with Law and Justice in 15 voivodeships (in 14 as POPiS, in Podkarpacie with another centre-right political parties). They stood separately only in Mazovia.

The POPiS coalition won 12% of the popular vote nationally, which was well below the expectations. Ludwik Dorn, the chairman of the PiS parliamentary club at the time, remarked: "Together, we gained as much as the PO itself collected a year earlier." This marked the point at which PO and PiS, until now ideological and political allies, started to grow apart. The leadership of PiS decided that it had to distance itself from PO and change its ideology in order to increase its popular support.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

In 2005, PO led all opinion polls with 26% to 30% of public support. However, in the 2005 general election, in which it was led by Jan Rokita, PO polled only 24.1% and unexpectedly came second to the 27% garnered by Law and Justice (PiS). A centre-right coalition of PO and PiS (nicknamed POPiS) was deemed most likely to form a government after the election. Yet the putative coalition parties had a falling out in the wake of the fiercely contested Polish presidential election of 2005.

In the 2005 elections, PiS attacked PO by campaigning on a difference between "liberal Poland" and its "social Poland". The former was marked by economic liberalism, austerity, deregulation and "serving the rich". In contrast, Law and Justice stressed its "social" character, pledging policies that would help the poor. The party attacked Civic Platform's flat tax proposal and advocated a much more active role of the state in the economy. Law and Justice also made "an offer to the left", stressing its economically left-wing policies.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Ultimately, Lech Kaczyński (PiS) won the second round of the presidential election on 23 October 2005 with 54% of the vote, ahead of Tusk, the PO candidate. Due to the demands of PiS for control of all the armed ministries (the Defence Ministry, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) and the office of the prime minister, PO and PiS were unable to form a coalition. Instead, PiS formed a coalition government with the support of the League of Polish Families (LPR) and Self-Defense of the Republic of Poland (SRP). PO became the opposition to this PiS-led coalition government.

Ruling government (2007–2015)

The PiS-led coalition fell apart in 2007 amid a corruption scandal involving Andrzej Lepper and Tomasz Lipiec<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and internal leadership disputes. These events led to new elections, and in the 21 October 2007 parliamentary election PO won 41.51% of the popular vote and 209 out of 460 seats in the Sejm and 60 out of 100 seats in the Senate of Poland. Civic Platform, now the largest party in both houses of parliament, subsequently formed a coalition with the Polish People's Party (PSL).

Despite declaring the parliamentary election campaign the will to limit taxation in Poland,<ref name="Standard"/> the Civic Platform implemented an ideologically diverse set of policies - it increased the excise imposed on diesel oil, alcoholic beverages, tobacco, and oil.Template:Refn It had also eliminated tax exemptions.Template:Refn

At the 2010 Polish presidential election, following the Smolensk air disaster which killed the incumbent Polish president Lech Kaczyński, Tusk decided not to present his candidature, considered an easy possible victory over PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński. During the PO primary elections, Bronisław Komorowski defeated Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski. At the polls, Komorowski defeated Jarosław Kaczyński, ensuring PO dominance over the contemporary Polish political landscape.<ref name=WBJ>Warsaw Business Journal Template:Webarchive</ref>

In November 2010, local elections granted Civic Platform about 30.1 percent of the votes and PiS at 23.2 percent, an increase for the former and a drop for the latter compared to the 2006 elections.<ref name=WBJ/> PO succeeded in winning four consecutive elections, and Tusk remained as kingmaker. PO's dominance was also a reflection of left-wing weakness and divisions on both sides of the political scene, with PiS suffering a splinter in Autumn 2010.<ref name="WBJ" /> Civic Platform won the plurality of votes in the 9 October 2011 parliamentary election, gaining 39.18% of the popular vote, 207 of 460 seats in the Sejm, and 63 out of 100 seats in the Senate.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In the 2014 European elections, Civic Platform came first place nationally, achieving 32.13% of the vote and returning 19 MEPs.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2014 local elections, PO achieved 179 seats, the highest single number.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2015 presidential election, PO endorsed Bronisław Komorowski, a former member of PO from 2001 till 2010. He lost the election receiving 48.5% of the popular vote, while Andrzej Duda won with 51.5%.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Opposition (2015–2023)

In the 2015 parliamentary election, PO came in second place, after PiS, achieving 24.09% of the popular vote, 138 out of 460 seats in the Sejm, and 34 out of 100 seats in the Senate.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2018 local elections, PO achieved 26.97% of the votes, coming second after PiS.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In the 2019 European elections, PO participated in the European Coalition electoral alliance which achieved 38.47%, coming second after PiS.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> On 1 October 2023, it held The Million Hearts march in Warsaw.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Return to power (2023–2025) and unification

The Civic Platform returned to power in a coalition with the Polish People's Party, Poland 2050 and New Left in the 2023 parliamentary election.

Template:Main In October 2025, the party announed its plans to merge into a new party with two of its smaller coalition partners, Modern and Polish Initiative.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The unification convention was held on 25 October 2025, where the three parties merged into a single party known as the Civic Coalition.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Some members of the 2018 electoral alliance Civic Coalition, such as the Greens, opted to remain a separate party.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The leader of the new party became Donald Tusk,<ref name="leader_ko">Template:Cite web</ref> and the new party is to complete its leadership election on 26 January 2026.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The creation of Civic Coalition marked the dissolution of the Civic Platform.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Ideology

Civic Platform banner carried during the opposition march on 4 June 2023

The Civic Platform was mainly described as a centre-right political party.Template:Refn Due to the peculiarity of Polish politics, as a major liberal opponent of the conservative PiS, the party was also classified as centrist<ref name="centrist">PO has often been described as centrist:

Since 2007, when Civic Platform formed the government, the party has gradually moved from its Christian-democratic stances, and many of its politicians hold more liberal positions on social issues. In 2013, the Civic Platform's government introduced public funding of in vitro fertilization program. Civic Platform also supported civil unions for same-sex couples but is against same-sex marriage and the adoption of children by same-sex couples. The party also currently supports liberalization of the abortion law,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> which it had opposed while in government.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> In response to the climate crisis, the Civic Platform pledged to end the use of coal for energy in Poland by 2040.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

PO was described as neoliberal,<ref name="kaminski_198">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="shields_367">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="zuk">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>PO has often been described as neoliberal:

After becoming the biggest opposition party, the Civic Platform became more culturally liberal and populist.<ref name="riishoj_30">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="wrobel_445">Template:Cite journal</ref> This tendency became especially popular among the younger generation of the party's politicians, such as mayor of Warsaw and presidential candidate Rafał Trzaskowski. The party has also changed its opinion about the social programs of PiS, starting to support them.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> After returning to the government in 2023, the party adopted an anti-immigration stance to migrants coming from Russia and Belarus.<ref name="migration_list">Template:Bulleted list|Template:Cite web</ref>

Organization

Leadership

No. Image Name Tenure
1 Maciej Płażyński 18 October 2001–
1 June 2003
2 Donald Tusk 1 June 2003–
8 November 2014
3 Ewa Kopacz 8 November 2014–
26 January 2016
4 Grzegorz Schetyna 26 January 2016–
29 January 2020
5 Borys Budka 29 January 2020–
3 July 2021
(2) Donald Tusk since 3 July 2021

Notable politicians

Political support

Template:See also

Civic Platform's support is concentrated in the west and north of the country. Areas voting for Bronisław Komorowski in 2010 are shaded orange above.

As of 2020, the party enjoyed the greatest support in large cities and among people with higher education and in managerial positions, while in terms of age, the electorate was evenly distributed,<ref name="biskup">Template:Cite journal</ref> and the electoral base of the Civic Platform lay in middle-aged, highly educated gold-collar and white-collar workers of the middle and upper-middle classes.<ref name="biskup"/> As of 2020, the Civic Platform electorate was made up of more women than men, was disproportionally represented by middle-aged, urban and middle-class voters, and was characterized by higher levels of education, higher position in the socio-professional structure, as well as moderate religiosity and Roman Catholicism.<ref name="zagała_198">Template:Cite journal</ref> The party consistently enjoyed overwhelming support of workers such as directors, managers and specialists, business owners and co-owners, and administrative workers.<ref name="biskup"/> At the same time, the party underperformed amongst blue-collar workers, young voters, farmers and students, as well as unemployed voters.<ref name="biskup"/> In regards to age, Civic Platform performed the best amongst voters aged 40–49, while also performing strongly among 30-39 and 50-59 year olds. The party performs the worst amongst the oldest (aged 60 or more) and the youngest (aged 29 or less) voters.<ref name="biskup"/> The party strongly appealed to urban voters, as almost a half of voters living in big cities (500,000 people or more) vote for Civic Platform; support for the party remains strong in middle-sized cities but strongly declines in small towns and the countryside, as on average only 15% of rural voters support it.<ref name="biskup"/>

As of 2016, an overwhelming majority of party's supporters (83%) were Roman Catholics, and 44% of these voters partook in religious practices at least once a week.<ref name="secler">Template:Cite book</ref> As of 2016, the party was supported by the Christian left, as well as liberal and moderate Catholics,<ref name="secler"/> while most of conservative Catholics in Poland support Law and Justice instead.<ref name="secler"/> Churchgoing Catholics are roughly evenly split between Civic Platform and Law and Justice, with a significant minority of churchgoers supporting Polish People's Party as well.<ref name="secler"/> Catholics who support Civic Platform "oppose, on the one hand, the state's enforcement of religious norms and, on the other, do not condone their violation".<ref name="kowalczyk">Template:Cite journal</ref> This is largely consistent with the party's attitude towards religion, which combines a moderately conservative and politically Catholic program with left-wing economic slogans, supported by Catholic social teaching and the teaching of John Paul II contained in the encyclical Centesimus annus.<ref name="kowalczyk"/>

As of 2020, most of Civic Platform's electorate identified as liberal conservatives, centrists and moderate conservatives.<ref name="zagała">Template:Cite journal</ref> No tendency dominates, as the party's supporters are roughly evenly split between political tendencies - 35% of party's supporters identify with political center, 28% as left-wing, and 24% as right-wing.<ref name="zagała"/> Throughout the 2010s, Civic Platform had been losing left-wing supporters due to the re-emergence of Lewica as well as Janusz Palikot's defection from the party.<ref name="zagała"/> The party also faced a challenge from Nowoczesna, whose vote "came largely from former Civic Platform supporters, disappointed with its failure to shake off its social conservatism".<ref name="koczanowicz">Template:Cite journal</ref> According to Janusz Jartyś of the University of Szczecin, the ideological base of Civic Platform are "national-conservative, liberal and social-democratic voters", with each faction expecting "at least partial implementation of their demands, stability in the governance of the country and social peace".<ref name="jartys">Template:Cite journal</ref> According to Søren Riishøj, the party was also unpopular amongst the traditionally social-democratic voters, who were opposed to Europeanisation and globalization, and were critical of the Civic Platform's "almost U.S. type of election campaign."<ref name="riishoj">Template:Cite journal</ref>

As of 2021, according to CBOS, Civic Platform was overwhelmingly popular amongst pro-European voters, with almost 80% of party's supporters wishing to cooperate with the European Union more.<ref name="cbos">Template:Cite journal</ref> The party is generally supported by moderates, as most of the party's voters wish for a "compromise" on issues such as abortion.<ref name="cbos"/> Economically, the party is supported by pro-business and welfare-oriented voters alike; while most of Civic Platform's supporters believe that Poland should become a welfare state, they are evenly split on issues such as progressive taxation and flat tax, and nationalization vs. privatization.<ref name="cbos"/> The party has also enjoyed the support of regionalists, autonomists and voters supportive of decentralization and localism in general.<ref name="cbos"/> Over 90% of Civic Platform supporters believe that local governments should have more power and that the national government should devolve its power to the regional governments of gminas and voivodeships.<ref name="cbos"/> The party is supported by Silesian regionalists,<ref name="wyborcza1">Template:Cite news</ref> and had organized joint electoral lists with Silesian parties like Silesian Autonomy Movement and Silesian Regional Party.<ref name="onet1">Template:Cite news</ref> Local politicians of the Civic Platform in Silesia are often associated with Silesian regionalism as well.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The party also enjoys support from the Kashubians and their local autonomist movement,<ref name="natemat1">Template:Cite news</ref> with the co-founder of the party, Donald Tusk, having expressed his support for autonomous Kashubia in 1992.<ref name="tusk1">Template:Cite news</ref>

In March 2023, Tusk stated that Silesian should be considered a language rather than an ethnolect as it has unique literature and grammar, and promised to recognize Silesian as an official, statutory language of Upper Silesia.<ref name="bankier_1">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="pap_1">Template:Cite news</ref> Tusk also declared that he was a regionalist.<ref name="bankier_1"/>

Election results

Presidential

Election year Candidate 1st round 2nd round
# of overall votes % of overall vote # of overall votes % of overall vote
2005 Donald Tusk 5,429,666 36.3 (#1) 7,022,319 46.0 (#2)
2010 Bronisław Komorowski 6,981,319 41.5 (#1) 8,933,887 53.0 (#1)
2015 Supported Bronisław Komorowski 5,031,060 33.8 (#2) 8,112,311 48.5 (#2)
2020 Rafał Trzaskowski 5,917,340 30.5 (#2) 10,018,263 48.9 (#2)
2025 Rafał Trzaskowski 6,147,797 31.4 (#1) 10,237,286 49.1 (#2)

Sejm

Election Leader Votes % Seats +/– Government
2001 Maciej Płażyński 1,651,099 12.7 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:No2
Template:No2
Template:No2
2005 Donald Tusk 2,849,259 24.1 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 68 Template:No2
Template:No2
2007 6,701,010 41.5 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 76 Template:Yes2
2011 5,629,773 39.2 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Decrease 2 Template:Yes2
2015 Ewa Kopacz 3,661,474 24.1 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Decrease 69 Template:No2
2019 Grzegorz Schetyna 5,060,355 27.4 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Decrease 36 Template:No2
As part of Civic Coalition, which won 134 seats in total.
2023 Donald Tusk 6,629,402 30.7 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 25 Template:Yes2
As part of Civic Coalition, which won 157 seats in total.

Senate

Election Vtes % Seats +/– Majority
2001 6,582,224 24.34 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:No2
As part of the Senate 2001 coalition, which won 15 seats.
2005 4,090,497 16.94 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 32 Template:Partial2
Template:No2
2007 12,734,742 39.14 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 26 Template:Yes2
2011 5,173,300 35.60 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 3 Template:Yes2
2015 4,323,789 28.85 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Decrease 29 Template:No2
2019 6,490,306 35.66 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 7 Template:Yes2
As part of the Civic Coalition, which won 43 seats.
2023 6,187,295 28.91 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Steady 0 Template:Yes2
As part of the Senate Pact 2023, which won 66 seats.

European Parliament

Election Leader votes % Seats +/– EP Group
2004 Jerzy Buzek 1,467,775 24.1 (#1) Template:Composition bar New EPP-ED
2009 Danuta Hübner 3,271,852 44.4 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 10 EPP
2014 2,271,215 32.1 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Decrease 6 EPP
2019 Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz 5,249,935 27.89 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Decrease 5 EPP
As part of the European Coalition, that won 22 seats in total.
2024 Marcin Kierwiński 4,359,443 37.04 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 4 EPP
As part of the Civic Coalition, that won 21 seats in total.

Regional assemblies

Election year % of
vote 		# of
overall seats won 		+/–
2002 12.1 (#4) Template:Composition bar
In coalition with Law and Justice (POPiS).
2006 27.2 (#1) Template:Composition bar
2010 30.9 (#1) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 36
2014 26.3 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Decrease 43
2018 27.1 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 15
As the Civic Coalition.
2024 30.6 (#2) Template:Composition bar Template:Increase 16
As the Civic Coalition.

Voivodeship Marshals

Name Image Voivodeship Date Vocation
Elżbieta Polak Lubusz Voivodeship 29 November 2010
Marek Woźniak Greater Poland Voivodeship 10 October 2005
Piotr Całbecki Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship 24 January 2006
Olgierd Geblewicz West Pomeranian Voivodeship 7 December 2010
Mieczysław Struk Pomeranian Voivodeship 22 February 2010
Andrzej Buła Opole Voivodeship 12 November 2013

See also

Notes

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References

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Sources

Template:Civic PlatformTemplate:Polish political parties Template:European People's Party Template:Authority control

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