Poland's Supreme Court will not consider a further two demands from ruling nationalists Law and Justice (PiS) for vote recounts in some districts after a tight Senate election, a spokesman said on Wednesday.
The court has so far announced that it will not consider three of the six protests raised by PiS after the October 13 election in which it lost control of the upper house of parliament, the Senate, to the opposition.
The Law and Justice party's setback in the Senate, coupled with a smaller than hoped for majority in the lower house, dealt a blow to its bid for a stronger mandate to pursue disputed overhauls of the judiciary, media and cultural institutions.
PiS had said that it was demanding recounts because in some of the districts where it lost by a narrow margin there were a lot of ballots that were spoiled, not counted or left blank.
"The purpose of an electoral protest," the court said in a statement, "is to point out specific violations of law affecting the outcome of the election...not to recalculate votes because of the slight difference between individual candidates."
Opposition parties hold 48 of 100 seats in the upper house, but wield a majority thanks to three independent senators who are broadly supportive. The Senate has the power to delay legislation and appoint some prominent figures in the state.
Poland's ruling eurosceptic nationalists have been embroiled in a long-running dispute with the European Union over its reforms of the judiciary and public media, which critics say have eroded the independence of both.
Autor: gf / Źródło: TVN24 News in English, Reuters
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: tvn24