After Andrzej Duda became President of Poland for the first time in the summer of 2015, the then 43-year-old politician earned a nickname that is still adhering to today: the notary. Because Duda himself openly blessed unconstitutional initiatives of the government led by his party “Law and Justice” (PiS). Duda even drove at night to receive orders to see PiS party leader Jarosław Kaczyński, his political foster father. But since Duda vetoed a highly controversial media law on Monday, he has stepped out of the shadow of this foster father for the first time in years. And Poland is wondering what made Duda do it.
With his veto, the president is securing the independence of Poland’s only critically reporting national television broadcaster TVN for the time being: its owner, the US company Discovery, should, according to the law, have to sell its controlling majority within six months. The law contradicted both the constitution and European obligations and not least an agreement between Poland and the USA. “Treaties have to be respected,” said the president. Poland should be respected in the world as an “honorable nation”.
Since 2015, of course, Duda, who was confirmed in office in 2020, rarely harbored such scruples. Despite studying law and having a doctorate in law from Kraków University, he had no qualms about signing illegal laws or appointments by the PiS. The nightly swearing-in of three illegally elected constitutional judges by him was notorious around the end of 2015. Later, the president, who is also entrusted with protecting the constitution, signed a number of laws that abolished the independence of the judiciary – and which were found to be just as unlawful as the illegally appointed constitutional judges by the Court of Justice of the EU and the European Court of Human Rights. In May 2020, Duda appointed a new President of the Supreme Court, also only after massive breaches of the law.
Many Poles who are politically uninterested, however, like Duda, who appears cordial in personal dealings, and his wife Agata. With his advocacy against artificial insemination and abortion, for example, Duda, the devout Catholic, scored points with his peers. His drumming against allegedly wealthy migrants wearing branded shoes and gold jewelry also falls on fertile ground for many Poles. It was of course different with the TVN law: More than half of the Poles were in favor of Duda refusing to sign. Tens of thousands demonstrated in 130 cities in Poland, and a good 2.5 million people signed a petition to protest.
So far, Duda has paid little attention to public opinion or the reputation of his country abroad
Up to now, Duda has often paid little attention to public opinion, international treaties or Poland’s reputation abroad. When Poland’s most important ally, the US, was ruled by Donald Trump, Duda met several times. Joe Biden, however, keeps Duda at a distance. The White House put maximum pressure on him because of the TVN law. On the sidelines of the last UN General Assembly, Duda mainly met other pariah politicians such as the presidents of Brazil and Turkey.
And times have also changed domestically. Duda’s relationship with PiS boss Kaczyński is at a low point and the two are said not to have spoken to each other for months. And the PiS is far from its former popularity; according to today’s polls, she would lose power in the parliamentary election planned for autumn 2023. Duda’s term of office does not end until 2025, but he cannot run again as president. His veto against the TVN law thus appears to be the first spectacular step towards appearing independently and building a political future without Kaczyński’s blessing.