2020-07-13 09:12 update: 2020-07-14, 19:45
Photo PAP/Mateusz Marek
Poland's incumbent President Andrzej Duda was re-elected for a five-year term of office on Sunday on 51.03 percent of the vote, the State Electoral Commission (PKW) announced at a press conference on Monday evening, presenting the official election results.
Duda, who was supported by the ruling camp, the conservative United Right, faced off in the run-off against Rafal Trzaskowski, the mayor of Warsaw, who was backed by the main opposition bloc, the centrist Civic Coalition. Trzaskowski, garnered 48.97 percent of votes, PKW said.
Duda managed to win 10.44 mln votes against Trzaskowski's 10.02 million.
The turnout in the Sunday presidential elections reached 68.18 percent, the second highest since the fall of communism in 1989.
President Andrzej Duda earlier on Monday thanked voters for supporting his Sunday re-election at a post-election rally in Odrzywol, central Poland.
Duda promised to do all he can to fulfil the hopes put in him by his electorate, and said that his wish was to be "a president of all Poles." In this context he stressed the importance of mutual respect, which he called the key to social tolerance of difference.
"If there is respect between us, that's enough for us to be a beautiful society, a society that differs, but differs beautifully," the president said.
Turning to economic matters, Duda said he believed Poland can return to its fast growth pace already next year, and even achieve as much as a 4 percent in growth rate. He noted that Poland's economy had coped well with the coronavirus epidemic and was in better shape than those of many other EU countries, and said that this was not least thanks to government aid for domestic enterprise.
Duda said that the government's so-called anti-crisis shield, a set of special laws passed to help offset the epidemic's effects on the economy, had helped save 5 million jobs in Poland. This, Duda said, was among the top priorities during the epidemic, as one of the highest values was "for families to be able to keep their heads above water despite all difficulties, and for no one to sink into poverty."
Duda said he believed Poland was facing prosperous years, and pledged that his political goal was for the entire country to develop at an even pace. He also spoke out for bridging development gaps between urban and rural areas, and appealed for help in his efforts to "glue Poland into a whole".
"Please help me glue our Poland and our people into a whole. There is only one Poland, and despite all differences, I would like us to develop evenly," Duda said in Odrzywol.
According to the State Electoral Commission, Duda's support in Odrzywol was 86.31 percent against 13.69 percent for Trzaskowski. (PAP)
