Poland's political crisis deepened on October 30, 2026, after judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska suspended Constitutional Tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski, prompting accusations of a coup d'état and street protests in Warsaw. President Karol Nawrocki aborted an official flight to Senegal mid-air to address the situation, while Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek requested lifting the leadership's immunity. Prime Minister Donald Tusk defended the moves as restoring the rule of law after years of Law and Justice (PiS) influence.
Suspension of Constitutional Tribunal leadership
- ▪Constitutional Tribunal judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska issued orders suspending tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski and deputy president Bartłomiej Sochański
- ▪Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska announced on October 30, 2026 that she would provisionally take charge of Poland's Constitutional Tribunal and called a general assembly of judges for November 3, 2026
Legal proceedings against tribunal leadership
- ▪Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek stated on October 30, 2026 that Constitutional Tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski and vice-president Bartłomiej Sochański should face criminal charges for blocking judges from adjudicating cases
- ▪Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek submitted five requests accompanied by 50 volumes of case files to lift the judicial immunity of Constitutional Tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski and deputy president Bartłomiej Sochański on October 30, 2026
President Nawrocki's emergency return to Warsaw
- ▪Polish President Karol Nawrocki cut short an official flight to Senegal
- ▪Upon returning to Warsaw on October 30, 2026, Polish President Karol Nawrocki held a meeting at the presidential palace with Constitutional Tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski and First Chief Justice Zbigniew Kapiński
Protests outside the Constitutional Tribunal
- ▪On October 30, 2026, a protester cut a chain securing the Constitutional Tribunal's gate, allowing Bogdan Święczkowski to enter the court grounds before police stopped him
- ▪On October 30, 2026, Law and Justice (PiS) founder Jarosław Kaczyński and protesters gathered outside the Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw, where police detained three people for climbing a perimeter fence
Disputes over Constitutional Tribunal appointments
- ▪In September 2026, Polish President Karol Nawrocki vetoed Prime Minister Donald Tusk's nomination of former cabinet minister Maciej Berek as a Constitutional Tribunal judge candidate
- ▪Polish President Karol Nawrocki refused to swear in Constitutional Tribunal judges elected by parliament, while Constitutional Tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski barred parliament-elected judges from hearing cases
Background on Law and Justice judicial reforms
- ▪European courts, including the European Court of Human Rights and the European Court of Justice, previously ruled that Law and Justice (PiS) majority appointments rendered Poland's Constitutional Tribunal non-independent
- ▪During the Law and Justice (PiS) government's term in office from 2015 to 2023, it overhauled Poland's judiciary by appointing its own judges to the Constitutional Tribunal, including president Bogdan Święczkowski
- ▪The European Commission previously froze billions of euros in European Union funding earmarked for Poland due to concerns regarding judicial independence under the Law and Justice (PiS) government
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