Electoral commission rejects PiS party's financial report for 2023

TVN24 reporter Paweł Łukasik said that "there will be no subsidy totaling 75 million zlotys." "This is due to the incorrect accounting of funds, which were meant for the campaign and party activities, being handled outside the designated account, leading to the revocation of the mentioned subsidy," he explained.

A member of the PKW, Ryszard Kalisz, informed that five members were "in favor" of rejecting the report, while four were against it.

According to the Political Parties Act, the rejection of an annual report occurs when it is found that a political party used funds from the received subsidy for purposes unrelated to its statutory activities.

Judge Sylwester Marciniak, the head of the PKW, told journalists that there is a right to file an appeal to the Supreme Court within seven days. He added that the Supreme Court should resolve the appeal within 60 days.

Marciniak emphasized that the subvention for the party will not be immediately withheld after the PKW rejects its financial report. "The subvention is paid as long as the Supreme Court has not dismissed the appeal. Therefore, in my opinion, we must wait for the Supreme Court's decision on the rejection of the financial report by the PKW."

Earlier, Ryszard Kalisz, asked by journalists whether the subvention for PiS in 2023 would be suspended or continue until the Supreme Court resolves the appeal, said that "it is a decision for the Minister of Finance (Andrzej Domański)."

"As you know, the subvention for the last quarter was suspended by the Minister of Finance, and after November 1, the last installment of this year was not paid," Kalisz recalled.

In response, Marciniak stated that "it would be very bad if a government administration body made such decisions."

Ryszard Kalisz also told reporters that during the PKW's Monday meeting, the commission adopted a "resolution" consisting of three parts. "The first part is an appeal to state authorities, especially the Sejm, to end the legal and constitutional chaos we have in Poland related to neo-judges. The second part states that the PKW will not recognize any decisions by individuals who are not judges," he said. He added that any ruling by the Extraordinary Control and Public Affairs Chamber of the Supreme Court "will not be recognized by us."

Sylwester Marciniak informed that the first point of the meeting "concerned the PKW's position on judges appointed after 2018." "I must admit that I was in favor of not adopting such a position, as this is not a resolution, nor a decision. Certainly, the PKW is not authorized to make such decisions because we act only within the boundaries of the law and in accordance with the law," he said.

He added that "the position adopted by the majority of votes refers to the well-known case law of the European Court of Human Rights, specifically the famous judgment from last year, the pilot judgment from November 23, which obligated the legislative authorities to change the constitutional provisions related to the judiciary." "And this date is approaching this week because no new decisions have been adopted. We are in a difficult situation because we must consider that next year, in accordance with the constitution and the Electoral Code, presidential elections are to take place, in which the Supreme Court plays a significant role," said the head of the PKW.

PiS spokesman Rafał Bochenek commented on the PKW decision. "The decision of political appointees in the PKW from the current December 13 coalition shows that the government's plan is to eliminate the only real opposition in Poland through unlawful administrative actions. They know that they will not win democratically and honestly, so they break the law and act through fait accompli. In the situation created, it is hard to talk about fair presidential elections in Poland. Everything points to this being part of a preparation for fraud in the upcoming presidential election," he wrote on the X platform.

"These decisions aim to introduce an autocratic system in Poland, personally controlled by Tusk. This has nothing to do with democracy and political pluralism. It is a denial of the standards that apply in the civilized world," he added.

Earlier, at the end of August, the PKW had already rejected the financial report of the PiS electoral committee from the 2023 parliamentary elections, accusing the party of irregularities in campaign financing amounting to 3.6 million zlotys.

As a result of this decision, the party’s grant (nearly 38 million zlotys) was reduced by three times the disputed amount, i.e., by about 10.8 million zlotys. The nearly 26 million zloty annual subsidy was reduced by 10.8 million, and PiS is also required to return the disputed sum of 3.6 million to the state treasury.

In early September, PiS appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, arguing that it had been made "in complete contradiction to the law."

The complaint has not yet been considered. If the Supreme Court deems the complaint valid, the PKW will reconsider accepting the financial report. However, the complaint will be considered by the Extraordinary Control and Public Affairs Chamber of the Supreme Court, which is not recognized by international tribunals, so it is unclear how its ruling will be treated. Government representatives suggested that the PKW’s decision should stand until it is overturned by a court with a recognized status.

"In reference to the Political Parties Act, this situation is binary. The report was rejected based on the same grounds as the rejection of the electoral committee's report," said Marcin Chmielnicki, spokesperson for the National Electoral Office.