Women and young voters were behind Donald Tusk’s remarkable election victory in Poland, it has been revealed, as the Eastern European country turned its back on nationalism in a historic about-turn.
Three opposition parties have vowed to restore democratic standards in Poland after they won a combined 54 per cent of the votes in the nation’s parliamentary election, final results show.
The conservative Law and Justice party, which has governed the country for eight turbulent years, won slightly over 35 per cent of the votes, making it the single party with the most votes.
But the party and its leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski lost their majority in parliament and appeared to have no way to hold on to power
Tusk has promised to roll back on the near-total abortion ban implemented by PiS, and will also row back on the country’s lurch towards nationalism.
He was rewarded by a surge in turnout among 18-to-49-year-olds, who gave most of their votes to Civic Platform, and women, who endorsed his promises to give them more control over their own bodies.
Barbara Nowacka, a Civic Platform MP, said it was an important day.
“Young women won’t be afraid to get pregnant, young women won’t be afraid to go to the doctor,” she said.
A higher proportion of 18-to-29 year-olds (68.8 per cent), 30-to-39 year-olds (72.3 per cent), and 40-to-49 year-olds (78.5 per cent) voted than those over 60, according to an Ipsos exit poll.
Among senior voters, a group that traditionally votes for the socially conservative PiS, turnout was 67 per cent. Of those, 53 per cent backed the incumbent government.
But Tusk was also able to win support from the over-50s and the 9.8 million people above 60, which was vital because there are more older than younger people in Poland.
The age group with the highest turnout was the 50 to 59 year-olds, with 83.2 per cent. Among that group, 44.2 per cent cast their ballot for PiS, while 32.9 per cent chose Civic Platform.
A combined 16.9 per cent opted for Third Way and the Left. More than 31 per cent of over-60s voted for Civic Platform, with a combined 12.7 per cent for Third Way and the Left.
Meanwhile, Confederation, the far-Right party that was expected to do well with younger voters and had been tipped as a potential coalition ally for PiS, underperformed. Even if it was to ally with PiS, the two parties would not have enough combined seats to command a majority.
Related: Tory Peter Bone facing suspension over finding of bullying and sexual misconduct
