The list places US President Donald Trump at No. 1, with Politico saying no one has exerted more influence "in or on Europe" this year.
"The return of Donald Trump as US president rumbled like an earthquake through countries and institutions still reeling from the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine," Politico said.
"The speed with which Washington turned from trusted ally to potential adversary shook the foundations on which Europe had long relied," it added.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz ranked second and third. Politico said both leaders "are at the forefront of the scramble" to adjust to Trump’s "thunderous impact."
Nawrocki is ranked No. 23.
In its profile, Politico says Nawrocki has broad appeal among conservative voters and has "transformed the presidential palace in downtown Warsaw into an alternative power center to the prime minister’s office."
"The result is gridlock," Politico wrote, noting that centrist Prime Minister Donald Tusk "controls the government, but his fragile coalition lacks the votes to override Nawrocki’s vetoes."
Meanwhile, Nawrocki "proposes bills, but the nationalist Law and Justice party that backs him doesn’t have the seats in parliament to pass them."
The two camps are "locked in a stalemate as both sides maneuver for advantage ahead of the next parliamentary election in 2027."
For Brussels, "the standoff is equally worrying, according to Politico. "Just as Poland was reemerging as a pillar of pro-European leadership, its two most powerful men are pulling in opposite directions — leaving the EU’s eastern flank more divided than ever," the outlet writes.
(mk/gs)