Yesterday (15.10.2023), the Parliamentary elections were held in Poland to elect members of the Sejm and Senate. We don’t have the results from Poland’s National Electoral Commission (PKW) yet; thus, we have carefully read the exit poll analysis.

We can already celebrate these results because of the election turnout! Studies show this is likely a record-breaking voter turnout in the Republic of Poland. It is predicted that as many as 72% of voters participated in elections, which has caused difficulties (for certain polling stations and voters queuing until late at night) and joy simultaneously – the joy of democracy.

Remember that four years ago (in 2019), the turnout for parliamentary elections was 61.74%. In the 2015 presidential elections, it was only 48.96%. The first free elections held in 1989 had a turnout of 62.70%. So far, the record for voter participation in elections is from the 1995 presidential elections, when 64.70% of eligible voters cast their ballots*.

If this year’s elections confirm that voter turnout exceeds 70%**, it can be said that the Polish society has indeed learned the lesson of civic rights, which we have been learning for over 25 years, and has come to believe that the voter’s voice matters. This voters’ mobilization certainly has many reasons, but for social researchers, it is a manifestation of civic agency and the need of democracy.

There will be time for further analysis (soon); I wonder, for example, how to mobilize young people (voters aged 18-30) in the future, as polls show a higher participation rate among middle-aged people (> 40 years old) … but that’s a concern for later. (Personally, I think we should think of new ways to teach and co-learn civic education).

There will undoubtedly be more lessons from these elections, and even if it might be called a ‘one-time social movement’ of the people of Poland, expressing one’s opinion/dissent through participation in elections is a sign that democratic quality and civic values are Poles’ real needs and expectations.

Data from:

*https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frekwencja_wyborcza

** https://tvn24.pl/tvn24-news-in-english/poland-probably-records-the-highest-voter-turnout-since-the-fall-of-communism-electoral-office-7393168

Parliamentary elections – note from the vote counting in Poland was prepared on 16.10.2023, at noon.

Dr. Katarzyna Iwińska, Collegium Civitas Sociology Department, Katarzyna.Iwińska@civitas.edu.pl