On Friday, November 22, shortly after 8 a.m., text messages were sent to 25,000 previously confirmed phone numbers of members of the party currently in power in Poland.
Voting is done via secure text messages, and participants have until midnight to submit their SMS ballots, with the results to be announced by Saturday noon at the latest.
The primaries involve members of all the parties in the KO coalition, including Civic Platform, Nowoczesna, the Greens, and Inicjatywa Polska.
The voting process is anonymous and overseen by an external company, with the election commission consisting of representatives from all KO parties as well as the candidates' teams.
KO candidates compete for support ahead of 2025 presidential election
Both candidates from Poland's centrist-liberal Civic Coalition have been actively seeking the support of party members in recent days. They aim to become the representatives of the country's current ruling coalition in next year's presidential election, likely to be held in May 2025.
The politician who wins the primary will present their program in early December in Silesia, officially launching their campaign.
Polls indicate that Trzaskowski is the frontrunner, largely due to his prominence as a 2020 presidential candidate, but Sikorski’s endorsement by notable figures like former President Aleksander Kwaśniewski, a prominent figure on the left of Poland's political scene, has surprised some observers.
Civic Coalition will stand united, says PM Tusk
"Regardless of the election results, the Civic Coalition will stand united, like a single fist," Donald Tusk commented on social media. The Polish Prime Minister thanked the candidates "for taking on the challenge and pledging full cooperation toward a shared victory."
Source: IAR/PAP/X/@sikorskiradek/@trzaskowski_/@donaldtusk
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