W artykule na podstawie literatury scharakteryzowano aktywność wyborczą najmłodszego elektoratu (18–24 lata) w wyborach parlamentarnych w 2015 roku. Podkreślono znaczenie poparcia młodzieży dla wyników wyborów. Następnie przedstawiono wyniki własnych badań przeprowadzonych na losowo dobranej grupie studentów uniwersytetów w Lublinie i w Olsztynie. Uwagę zwrócono na absencję wyborczą studentów, jej przyczyny oraz na odpowiedź, kogo poparliby w wyborach (i dlaczego), gdyby wzięli w nich udział. Ponieważ niegłosujący (non voters) studenci głównie wskazali komitet wyborczy Kukiz’15 i komitet wyborczy KORWiN, należy uznać, że te dwa ugrupowania najwięcej straciły na braku frekwencji młodych, studenckich wyborców.

Early parliamentary elections in Macedonia in 2011 and its consequences  for the Macedonian party system

In this article I point to the three reasons for a dissolution of the Macedonian parliament in 2011: the conflict between the government and opposition private media, the inefficient foreign policy and the difficult economic situation. Based on the analysis of the last election’s results I advance the thesis that the political crisis in Macedonia in the period 2008-2010 did not disturb the stability of the political scene and the early election showed how ‘frozen’ remains Macedonian party system.

Evolution of parliamentary electoral law in the Republic of Albania after 1990

The aim of this article is to analyse the evolution of the Albanian parliamentary electoral law. In order to trace the changes that have taken place, a detailed analysis has been made of all Albanian electoral laws since 1990, along with their amendments. In the article, the authors indicate the components of the Albanian electoral system and examine the impact of its dynamics on the conditions of the Albanian political system after 1990. In connection with the adopted dependencies between the electoral and party systems, the authors would like to answer the question whether in this case the electoral system is the creator of dynamic changes in the party system of Albania.

In the direction of Scandinavian model of parliamentary monarchy?  Changes in British constitutional law to the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011

Subject of the paper is Fixed -term Parliaments Act which was adopted in 2011, under which the British monarch lost power to dissolve the parliament, which was in force since the beginning of the English parliamentarism. The author analyzes the few Polish and Anglo-Saxon literature comments to the Act, and also indicates the consequences of different legal solutions to the structure of the British constitution. As a result of the adoption of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 there has been a change in the British Constitution: constitutional convention of Lascelles Principles lost its power, and also the earlier prerogative of the monarch expired and the so-called statute laws was added yet another piece of legislation. The author also notes that the adoption of the Act led to the inhibition of evolutionary strengthening the position of Prime Minister, among other organs of the state.

Determining the validity of elections in accordance with the provisions  of the Polish Constitution of 2 April 1997 and the Electoral Law in relation to Elections to the Sejm and the Senate of 12 April 2001

Determination of the election validity is one of the most important elements in the electoral procedure, contributing significantly to legitimacy of the elected body. Institutions ensuring a fair election process, first of all, ensuring compliance of the results with the will of the sovereign. They constitute in contemporary times one of the key determinants of free elections, alongside democratic procedures for nominating candidates, free competition of political programs and opportunities for voters to express their will in the overt act of voting. Based on the Polish constitutional law, several of the current election verification systems have been applicable. In relation to individual elements of each model, both positive assessments and critical remarks can be formulated. The following article focuses on explaining the rules for verification of Polish parliamentary elections under the current Constitution, together with the questions relating to the applicability of certain provisions of the adopted mode of the validation procedure for the election to the Sejm and the Senate.

Celem artykułu jest wskazanie rozwiązań dotyczących zapewnienia bezpieczeństwa społeczności lokalnych zawartych w dokumentach programowych następujących partii politycznych: Prawo i Sprawiedliwość, Platforma Obywatelska RP , Nowoczesna Ryszarda Petru, Zjednoczona Lewica, Polskie Stronnictwo Ludowe, Partia Razem, Koalicja Odnowy Rzeczypospolitej Wolność i Nadzieja, a także ruchu społecznego, a obecnie stowarzyszenia Kukiz 15. Autor wyróżnił najważniejsze składowe bezpieczeństwa społeczności lokalnych; należą do niego: bezpieczeństwo przestrzeni (infrastruktura drogowa, miejsca wypoczynku, architektura, oświetlenie); bezpieczeństwo publiczne jest rozumiane jako gwarancja niezakłóconego funkcjonowania zarówno obywateli, jak i instytucji; bezpieczeństwo ekologiczne; dostęp do usług, świadczeń, instytucji; bezpieczeństwo ekonomiczne społeczności lokalnej.
W tekście autor postara się odpowiedzieć na pytanie, czy w programie partii politycznych bezpieczeństwo społeczności lokalnych było wyartykułowane i stanowiło wyróżniony fragment programu. Jak dużo związana z nim problematyka zajmowała miejsca. Na jakich elementach bezpieczeństwa skupiały się środowiska polityczne podczas wyborów parlamentarnych w 2015 roku.

Kampania wyborcza toczy się zwykle na wielu polach. Do najważniejszych należą oczywiście media, które stanowią jeden z głównych kanałów komunikacji kandydatów z wyborcami. Wśród wykorzystywanych do tego narzędzi znajdują się materiały emitowane w ramach obligatoryjnych radiowych audycji wyborczych. Autor sprawdza, jakie materiały zaprezentowały dwa główne komitety startujące w kampanii parlamentarnej w 2015 roku – Prawo i Sprawiedliwość oraz Platforma Obywatelska. Analizuje ich przekaz, rekonstruuje ich główne przesłania oraz wykorzystane środki retoryczne.

Artykuł jest próbą odpowiedzi na pytanie o podobieństwo wyników wyborów do sejmików województw i następujących po nich wyborów do Sejmu RP. Trzy nakładające się na siebie cykle wyborcze w latach 2006–2015 pozwalają na bardziej systematyczną ocenę zjawiska nacjonalizacji regionalnych systemów politycznych. Po przedyskutowaniu różnych czynników, kształtujących odmienność wyników wyborów różnych szczebli, autorzy dokonują przeglądu literatury na temat nacjonalizacji systemów partyjnych. Omawiają również konstrukcję wskaźnika niepodobieństwa, używanego do badania nacjonalizacji – i jego dekompozycję pozwalającą na dokładniejsze wskazanie przyczyn odmienności wyników wyborów różnych szczebli. Badanie pokazuje, że w ciągu ostatniej dekady wzorce głosowania w wyborach regionalnych stawały się coraz bardziej odmienne od wzorców głosowania w wyborach do Sejmu. Najważniejszym czynnikiem wpływającym na zróżnicowanie wyników wyborów pozostają różnice w poparciu najbardziej stabilnych partii politycznych występujących na obu arenach rywalizacji.

The Evolution of the Basic Principles of Electoral Law in Elections to Constitutive Organs of the Units of Local Government and Parliamentary Elections in Poland Since 1989

 The scope of this article is to show the evolution of the basic principles of electoral law in elections to constitutive organs of the units of local government and parliamentary elections in Poland since 1989. In the article it is shown the constitutional and statutory regulations concerning basic principles of electoral law and the methods of determining the elections results applicable in Poland in past thirty years, from the Sejm and the Senat Electoral Acts of 1989, to the Electoral Code of 2011 (amended in 2018). According to the author of this article, this evolution of rules results in establish two models of regulations of the principles of electoral law and electoral system. The first model is applicable in elections to Sejm, to voivodeships councils, to county councils and to municipal councils in “big” municipalities (more than 20.000 citizens), the second model is applicable in elections to Senat and to municipal councils in “small” municipalities (less than 20.000 citizens).

The article analyzes the election programmes of the two largest political parties in Poland, namely, Law and Justice and the Civic Platform (Civic Coalition) from the 2019 parliamentary elections, referring to the proposals of these parties to change the functioning of the state, in particular the scope of legislative, executive and judicial power. The conclusion summarizes the presented programme proposals, considering whether their implementation would be possible under the current political conditions.

Przedmiotem niniejszego artykułu są wybory parlamentarne w Republice Litewskiej. Podjęto się analizy przebiegu i uwarunkowań instytucjonalnych wyborów, które odbyły się na Litwie w październiku 2020 roku w czasie trwającej pandemii Covid-19. W artykule przeanalizowano takie elementy, jak: wyniki wyborów na Litwie w 2020 r., nowe regulacje wyborcze, a także zaimplementowane nowe techniki głosowania w czasie pandemii. Oprócz tego poruszono także zagadnienia przebiegu kampanii wyborczej, która prowadzona była w warunkach obostrzeń i ograniczeń, które miały zwiększyć bezpieczeństwo wyborców oraz zmniejszyć transmisję koronawirusa SARS-CoV-2.

The COVID-19 pandemic was a determinant of the operation of state institutions whose activity was focused on ensuring state’s capacity to exercise its functions and at the same time on efforts to contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2. These challenges were the same for all European (and non-European) countries, albeit the methods of limiting the transmission of the virus and of minimising its negative consequences varied depending on the strategy adopted. The paper focuses on an analysis of its impact on how parliamentary elections in Serbia are organized and held. The author intentionally omits circumstances that accompany regional (to the parliament of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina) and local elections held in parallel.

The proposal to introduce a majority voting system has become one of the most crucial elements of rivalry in the Polish presidential campaign of 2015. It was accompanied by an accusation that the proportional voting system seemingly affects the political life in Poland, making it more and more party-dependant. The aim of the present article is to refute the above accusation and present the weaknesses of the majority voting systems, based on British political system. Comparative, historical and analytical methods will be used in order to substantiate the thesis of the article, i.e. that political parties’ influence will not be reduced due to the introduction of the majority voting system. Moreover, the article will also discuss the reasons behind and consequences of using the proportional voting system in Poland, in the light of the so called “crisis of democracy”.

Soft marketing. evolution of audiovisual political advertising in Polish parliamentary campaigns 2005–2019

The article discusses the problem of the evolution of audiovisual political advertising in Polish parliamentary campaigns in the years 2005–2019, taking a closer look at the presentation of programmatic issues, centralized personalization, and the rhetorical functions of spots. The content analysis of the election spots results in a fairly unchanged marketing standard of election offers, appropriate for all parties (regardless of their size), expressing an attempt to combine sensitivity to important voters’ needs with an extensive symbolic layer, emotionally engaging for image purposes. In most spots, the emphasis on psychological and social benefits at the expense of functional (economic) benefits prevails. The change in campaigns concerns only the increase in the importance of appeals attacking political opponents. However, their role remains secondary, regardless of the party’s position on the political market.

Decisions and motives of young female teacher candidates to participate in the October 15, 2023 parliamentary elections

In this article we present the results of the author’s research, conducted immediately after the parliamentary elections of October 15, 2023. The purpose of the research was to identify the electoral activity of people who are studying preschool and early childhood education, and preparing for the teaching profession. We consider their activities as a priority in developing pro-social attitudes of their charges. The study used the method of diagnostic survey. For the analysis presented here, we used the part on the questions of participation of female respondents in elections and sociodemographic characteristics of the respondents. The survey was conducted among 265 female students aged 18 to 26 (the average age was 21.4), in the teaching faculty in all five years. The study notes significant differences in the election declarations of respondents, compared to the general population of Poles with active voting rights. For the most part, respondents have made a choice of different ideas represented by specific electoral committees than the electorate of their parents, or people from the local environment. The voter turnout and the choices of the respondents give hope for an appreciation of democratic values and the laying of the foundation for building a civil society.

Influence of the Institution of the Electoral Quota on the Phenomenon of Female Rookie MPs in the Polish Parliament

This article presents the legal conditions for parity on electoral lists to the Polish Sejm and statistical data on „female rookie MPs” in the 21st century, in order to show whether the emergence of a statutory quota is a factor determining the increase in the percentage of female rookie MPs in the Sejm. Starting with a legal analysis, through to theoretically define „rookie MPs”, the authors shows a statistical analysis of election results, pointing to factors determining the scale of the phenomenon of new female MPs. The authors pose the following research questions: (1) Did the introduction of the statutory quota increase the proportion of female debutant MPs in successive terms of office? (2) Has the situation of female MPs on electoral lists changed over the statutory quota? The analysis carried out in this way made it possible to identify the factors determining the percentage of female MPs making their debut in the Sejm of subsequent terms, which are (1) the introduction of a statutory quota on electoral lists and (2) continuous, gradual improvement of the situation of debutant female MPs on electoral lists.