Celem artykułu jest określenie znaczenia wyborów prezydenckich i parlamentarnych 2015 r. dla procesu ewolucji polskiego systemu partyjnego. Autor weryfikuje trzy hipotezy – pierwszą, według której wybory nie przyniosły zmian w strukturze systemu partyjnego, drugą – wybory zapoczątkowały nowy etap w tym procesie – i trzecią, wskazującą, że wybory przyniosły nowe zjawiska w procesie ewolucji, które w przypadku potwierdzenia się i ugruntowania w przyszłości mogą wprowadzić system partyjny w nowy etap. Autor stwierdza, że trzecia hipoteza w prawidłowy sposób określa znaczenie elekcji 2015 r. Analiza bazuje na metodologii nauk o polityce i prowadzona jest zarówno w wymiarze ilościowym, jak i jakościowym.

Order a nationwide referendum by the President of the Republic of Poland in matters of particular importance to the State (selected problems)

The Constitution of the Republic of Poland of 1997 granted the President of the Republic of Poland the right to order a nationwide referendum on issues of special importance for the state. Managing such a referendum is not made by the President of the Republic of Poland alone but requires the consent of the Senate in the form of a resolution. In Poland, after the adoption of the Constitution of the Republic of Poland in 1997, the institution of the referendum was to use only three times. The last referendum, which is the subject of the analysis was ordered on September 6, 2015. The problem of ordering a referendum by the President of the Republic of Poland, although seemingly obvious, gave birth to a number of practical problems – interpretation used the term “cases of special importance for the country,” judicial supervision of constitutionality and legality of the referendum, the correctness of the formulation of the referendum question.

Organization of elections in Spanish-speaking countries – selected issues

Elections and its organization is a very important issue in democratic countries. Legislative shall look for interesting models in other countries. In Spanish and South American laws we can find some inspiring solutions in the fields like: electoral administration, external voting, electoral campaign, the day of general election, counting of votes. For sure those solutions take into consideration the peculiarity of particular countries, but can be a good inspiration for Polish legislative.

Institution of Revocation of Representatives by Voters in the Republic of Belarus

The Constitution of the Republic of Belarus of March 15, 1994, defining the status of members of the parliament and deputies of the local councils of deputies, referred to the canons of constitutional regulation of the status of a representative in former socialist countries, and above all: the concept of an imperative mandate and the institution of recalling voters by the voters. The aim of this study is first and foremost a comprehensive presentation of Belarusian legal regulations pertaining to the said institution, the conditions for its application, the principles of the appeal process as well as its legal consequences. Discussion of this issue is preceded by a characteristic of the assumed role of the recall of representatives in the doctrinal and legal model of representation adopted in Belarus.

European Parliament election 2014 in Lithuania –  participation of Polish minority

The article deals with the issues of the elections to the European Parliament (EP) in Lithuania, which took place in may 2014 year. Author’s research interest is the Polish minority in Lithuania, the largest ethnic group after the Lithuanians in the country. For many years, the representatives of the Polish minority were actively involved in different types of elections. At first by the Union of Poles in Lithuania (ZPL), and then by the Electoral Action of Poles in Lithuania (AWPL). The aim of the paper was to analyze the results of elections in Lithuania, with particular focus on the Vilnius region and AWPL participation. The main research material were the results of the elections presented by the Main Election Commission in Lithuania as well as documents related to the topic.

Changes in Electoral Code according to local elections

In January 2018, the Sejm and Senate have passed hugely controversial law, which is supposed, according to its title, to „increase the participation of citizens in the process of electing, functioning and controlling certain public bodies”, amending inter alia Polish Electoral Code. This amendment destabilizes the electoral system without a clear or evident need short before the most hard and difficult electoral process – the local elections. The most controversial proposals concerned the changes in electoral administration and limiting the mayor (city president) to two terms in office. This law, may lead to politicization of the electoral administration, so there are risks of a loss the transparency of the election. The Author tries to present and evaluate most important changes resulting from new legislation.

Change of rules of constituency creation for local government elections in the Election Code Amendment of 2018

The article presents changes of rules of constituency creation. Purposefulness of the analysis occurred due to the Election Code Amendment of 2018. Changes introduced by the Amendment are very thorough and, at their final stage, will take away communes’ right to create the constituencies, since according to the act of 11 January 2018, since 1 January 2019 right of division of local government units into constituencies and of making changes in this area will become a sole competency of a Election Committee Head. The article also analyses the created legal circumstances in regards to their constitutionality.

The Implementation of the Principle of Equal Suffrage in the Election  to the Councils of Cities with County Rights

Polish Electoral Code, which came into force in 2011, only slightly changed the rules of election of the councils of cities with county rights. Consequently, if the implementation of the principle of formal aspect of equal suffrage (equal voting rights) in the elections to these councils is undoubted that the material aspect of that rule (equal voting power) is controversial. This is due to the existence of relatively small constituencies, in which the number of seats based on the number of inhabitants, and not the number of electors or actually voting people. Another problem concerns the division of seats in those councils with d’Hondt method, which is the PR-system favorable for the largest political groups. Additionally, as practice shows, we have to make reservations if way of financing the electoral campaign does not affect the third aspect of the principle of equal elections – equality of opportunity. As a result we can say that the code very narrowly defined the equality of elections to the councils of cities with county rights.

The challenges of globalization and the modern electoral system

The article focuses on one of the most essential problems of contemporary science of politics which is the issue of participation of citizens in elections and referenda and factors which stimulate and determinate this participation. It has been proved that the attendance at elections in Poland is one of the lowest in Europe and therefore ways of making Polish electoral system more citizen-friendly seem to be necessary. The state ought to stimulate the increase of political culture and create pro-civic attitudes among citizens. What may also be implemented is the reform of the electoral system which would allow citizens to vote by pro- xy, mail, the Internet, or even by sending a text message. Introduction of actions shown above seems to be inevitable and is not only linked with the fact that Polish society is aging, but also with simplifying the process of electoral decision- making for Polish migrants.

Elections in Rome in the Age of the Republic were considered just as important, and voters were as much manipulated in Rome of the time as nowadays. Manipulation was nevertheless easier, than nowadays because of the process of elections. The rule of the aristocracy against the masses, and especially the popular assembly was ensured institutionally. And as votes were cast within centurie, they could continue to make use of all means of manipulation arising from the centuria system against the masses. The campaign took one year, so albeit anybody could enter the elections (subject to meeting the above conditions), actually only those had any chance who did not make a living by working, earning wages, but had their own property. In this paper we shall survey the order of the election of consules and election campaign in the last century of the Republic. (I.) After that we analyse the role of associations (collegia) in the election campaign. (II.) Finally, we shall discuss order of procedure of criminal procedure in Cicero’s age with special regard to the criminal procedure in the cases of bribery, i.e. ambitus. (III.)

The evolution of the criminalisation of actions aimed against elections

The elections, and their course in particular, are an immensely significant element of the society’s participation in the public life and, as such, they should be placed under the special protection of the state. This can be justified by the peculiar role of elections – that of the core of democracy. The means of protection include the penal regulations which sanction breaches of the voting rules. As a result of the analysis of the current trend in the evolution of the criminalisation of various acts aimed against voting, one may notice that those regulations are introduced in a dual manner. Initially, the actions which violate the voting rules were specified as a part of the penal legislation, however, after 1989, they are also included in the election acts.

The problem of legal responsibility for electoral promises 

The responsibility for electoral promises is the fragment, segment, wider problems of responsibility for word in the public life. In democratic legal state, the state should assure citizens certainty to the statement of representatives of state organs ( the public power). The problem with “ electoral actions” is also that take part in them persons are not such representatives. Here also appears the question of the legal responsibility for words, the promises advoctae in course of electoral campaign. The subject of present study is current. The public debate focuses round meaning (and the sharpness) the words expressed by representatives of political scene. Recent tragical events in Poland (murder on political background) are proof on this, that statements policy has the larger power of dazzling than “usual” men. What is the possibility of accounts folding the electoral promises with lack their realization? The consequences are not only in civil law. This article is the attempt of multiplane analysis of problem.

Special meaning of ballot for the judiciary 

Lot and ballot are alternatives forms of the election. In the ancient democracy the first possibility was more popular as better because is independent from the people’s emotions. So Aristotle and Montesquieu represent the constant view that ballot is typical for aristocracy and lot for democracy. The both incarnations of election we can find in medieval Italian city-states as Venice or Firenze, but Great French Revolution changes the democratical paradigm in the direction of victory of balloting as practical almost unique variant of election in the modern both socialist and liberal democracies. In our times lot exists in electional procedures sporadically, for example in the situation of the equal quantity of voices given for two or more candidates. In such situation the creators of law, also in Poland, accept the possibility of using lot in the character of aiding, also evidently non substantial, procedure in the modern democracy

Celem artykułu jest analiza wyborów do Parlamentu Europejskiego, które odbywały się w dniach 22 – 25.05.2014 r. W wyborach tych ponad 100 mandatów zdobyli eurosceptycy, przeciwnicy idei wspólnotowych. Pomimo że euroentuzjaści wciąż stanowią większość, konsekwencje ostatnich wyborów nie pozostaną bez echa. Niniejszy artykuł wskazuje na przyczyny takiego rozłożenia mandatów oraz skutki wyborów dokonanych przez obywateli poszczególnych państw Unii Europejskiej.

It is without any doubt that one of the most important elements of every democratic political system is a Parliament, that is, a collective authority elected in direct elections, which is simultaneously an emanation of will of citizens as a sovereign. Over the years of the technological development of societies and evolution of the economic cooperation amongst states, its role and scope of responsibilities have gradually grown. The European Parliament is one of the key elements of the institutional system of the European Union, and thus, the only body, the composition of which is elected in direct election. This body, as a forum for universal representation by the elected deputies from the member states, brings together views and positions not only of the representatives but also of their electorate. The parliament is also an expression of the multinational EU community, its voice and its desire to have influence on the fate of the entire EU.
This article presents the evolution of the European Parliament and of the election law concerning this body, since its formation as an institution of the European Union until now. The purpose of this article is to present changes which have taken place in the EU legislation in respect of the electoral law, on the basis of which members of the parliament are elected, since the formation of the EP. The main subject of this article covers following issues: how the evolution process of the parliament has looked like over the years, how its position in the institutional architecture of the EU has been evolving and how it has been endeavoured to harmonize electoral procedures to this body over the years. The article is about the evolutionary political position of the EP. The article focuses on selected aspects of unification of the electoral procedure for the election to the EP due to their path-breaking character and importance of the procedure being currently in force.

Voting by a proxy in the municipal elections – the rules and manner of granting the proxy and the legal nature thereof

The aim of the article is to analyse and to evaluate the Election Code provisions in the aspect of implementing the recommendations of the Council of Europe formulated in the Code of good practices of electoral matters and to attempt to determine the legal nature of the power of attorney for voting institution. The possibility to vote in the elections by a proxy is an exception from the principle of voting in person. For a particular group of voters it is often the only possibility to participate in the elections. Proxy voting implements the principle of universal suffrage; simultaneously, however, it poses a threat to the correctness of the election process. For this reason, in accordance with the recommendations of the Council of Europe, the admissibility of a proxy voting must be subject to precise legal regulation. It is important that this institution should never become an instrument for influencing the election result easily. In the event of the local government elections, it is particularly important as single votes may decide on its result.

The criminal background of the candidates in the mayor’s elections

General local elections, including the elections of the mayors’, are very important for the local democracy. In Poland, Electoral Code regulates the requirements for the candidates for this office. One of them is not being convicted. This requirement has changed over the years and it causes legal and practical problems. The Author analyzes legal solutions in this aspect and tries to find the answer, if the applicable rules are optimal.

Algorithms prioritizing in the light of the principle of free elections

The principle of free elections allows for broad protection of imponderables related to the electoral process. Its scope covers activities ranging from the possibility of reading electoral information, up to the voting process itself. Such a broad approach to this principle of electoral law, which in fact is currently not expressed expressis verbis in the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, allows protection of the entire voting process. This, in turn, seems crucial in the field of reference to modern technologies. These are undoubtedly easier for us to live, however, improperly used, they can interfere with democratic processes. This article is an attempt to answer a momentous practical question: how can the content optimization algorithms used in search engines and social networks influence freedom of choice, and whether inappropriate use of these algorithms may violate the law and to what extent can it influence democratic processes? In my opinion, taking up this research topic will help to secure the interests of democratic states, as well as looking at the principle of “free elections” in a slightly different context than before.

Voting by Correspondence and Voting by Proxy: World Experiences vs. Ukrainian Realities

Under modern conditions elections are an integral part of social life of every state. They determine the level of democratism of a state system and constitute the basic form of exercising the sovereign power of the nation. Elections are the foundations of a democratic political system and a guarantee that interests of various social groups are represented in state organs. Under Ukrainian legislation a special place is occupied by personal voting. Nevertheless, voting by correspondence and voting by proxy are not at all inconsistent with personal voting. The thorough analysis of the possibility to apply voting by correspondence and voting by proxy in all types of elections in Ukraine allows for the conclusion that providing for this option by the legislator would have a positive impact on democratisation in Ukraine. It would therefore be necessary to make an amendment to electoral law by establishing precise criteria of membership to the category of voters that would be entitled to cast their vote by correspondence and/or by proxy. It also would be recommendable to increase the legal responsibility of the participants in electoral processes for breaching electoral laws. Above all, it would be necessary to develop effective legal mechanisms that would enable to enforce legal responsibility, including the criminal liability. The indicated measures would result in eliminating the unlawful control over electoral processes, as well as in diminishing the electoral absenteeism, which in turn would enhance the legitimacy of power.

Postępująca mediatyzacja polityki i uzależnienie działań politycznych oraz ich efektów od sposobu i zakresu relacjonowania przez media daje dziennikarzom olbrzymią władzę: co prawda to nie oni podejmują decyzję, ale to oni ustalają na jaki temat odbywa się publiczna debata. To media wprowadzają tematy do publicznego obiegu i to mogą skazać na polityczny niebyt niechciane czy niemodne tematy, a wraz z nimi polityków.