Nearly 1.900 infections in Poland. Top presidential challenger calls for election boycott

The main Polish opposition candidate running for president called on Sunday for a boycott of the country's May election due to the coronavirus and completely suspended her campaign, adding to doubts about whether the vote will go ahead as planned.

The ruling nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party has so far stuck to the May 10 date for the presidential election despite calls to delay the vote.

On Saturday, it introduced rules on postal voting, infuriating the opposition which said changing regulations so close to the election was unconstitutional.

"Let's boycott these elections. Poles stay home, your life is the most important thing," Małgorzata Kidawa-Błońska, the presidential candidate of the centre right Civic Platform (PO) party, told reporters, calling on other candidates to suspend their campaigns.

Incumbent President Andrzej Duda, a PiS ally, is well ahead in the polls and his election is crucial to the government's hopes of implementing its socially conservative agenda as the president holds the power to veto laws.

Critics say PiS is keen to hold the elections in May to capitalise on Duda's current strong position and avoid a later election where the fallout from the pandemic could dent his popularity.

Władyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, the agrarian Polish Peasants' Party's (PSL) presidential candidate, was quoted by state-run news agency PAP as saying he was focusing on amendments to the government's package of anti-crisis economic measures.

The campaign manager of left-wing candidate Robert Biedroń likened Kidawa-Błońska's move to "political retirement", PAP reported.

Health Minister Łukasz Szumowski said on Thursday that an assessment should be made in two weeks.

On Sunday, 224 cases of coronavirus infection have been confirmed, 25 cases less than on Saturday (249 - the record number so far) - the Health Ministry informed. In total, 1862 people have been infected in Poland, of which 22 have died.