Poles voted in a presidential runoff election on Sunday that pits the identical twin brother of the last head of state, who was killed in a plane crash, against the acting president.
Both men, Jaroslaw Kaczynski and Bronislaw Komorowski, are former anti-communist activists with conservative, Catholic upbringings. Yet they differ sharply on key issues and the outcome of the election is expected to have a significant influence on whether the country pushes through more market reforms or preserves significant welfare benefits.
An election was originally set for the fall but had to be called early to replace President Lech Kaczynski, who died on April 10 in a plane crash in western Russia. The crash also killed his wife Maria and 94 others, including many high-ranking military and government officials.
The first round of voting on June 20 ended with no candidate winning an absolute majority, leading to Sunday’s runoff between Komorowski, the acting president and parliament speaker, and Kaczynski, the identical twin brother of Lech.
More than 30 million of Poland’s 38 million citizens are registered to vote. The first exit polls will be released immediately after polls close at 8 p.m. (1800 GMT), but official results are not expected until Monday.
For most of the campaign Komorowski, a moderate in the governing pro-EU Civic Platform party, has been favored, largely because he is seen as a reliable choice and because his government steered Poland through the global economic downturn without falling into recession.
But a survey published Friday showed a rise in support for Kaczynski, whose traditional conservative voter base has been reinforced by sympathy votes following his brother’s death and the toning down of his image.
In the first round, in which 10 candidates competed, Komorowski got 41.5 percent of the votes and Kaczynski 36.5 percent.
Poland’s president has many ceremonial duties, but he can also veto laws, and as commander in chief has influence on foreign military operations.
Komorowski has pledged to work closely with the government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk to adopt the euro in about five years, end the military mission in Afghanistan in 2012, promote pro-market reforms and keep the Catholic church separate from the state.
Kaczynski has toned down his combative and anti-communist style but kept his conservative views on family life and stressed his Roman Catholicism. A noted euroskeptic, Kaczynski has vowed to fight for more EU funds to help Poland’s poor farm regions and is reluctant to set a timetable for the adoption of the euro.
While Kaczynski is seen as more charismatic, many Poles remember the chaotic government he led from 2006-2007 and his zealousness in trying to eliminate former communists from public life.
A telephone poll by Gfk Polonia of 1,000 adults published Friday by the Rzeczpospolita daily gave Kaczynski 49 percent of vote to Komorowski’s 47 percent — within the error margin of plus or minus three percentage points.
