We respect President's decision but we hold on to our standpoint; we believe that European elections are important and we wanted a strong representation which would influence decisions, not such dispersion - Law and Justice's spokesperson Beata Mazurek said on Thursday commenting on President Duda's decision to block changes to European election rules.
Poland's president said on Thursday he would veto a law proposed by the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party that would benefit bigger parties, including the eurosceptic PiS and the main opposition grouping, in European Parliament elections next year.
"We respect President's decision but we hold on to our standpoint," said Law and Justice's spokesperson Beata Mazurek.
Beata Mazurek also said: "we believe that European elections are important and we wanted a strong representation which would influence decisions, not such dispersion. That would allow small, actually insignificant parties enter the Europarliament".
"It's a good move by the President to veto of the amendment changing European elections rules, as it would leave smaller parties with no chances for seats," said the Head of Civic Platform's Parliamentary Club Sławomir Neumann.
"President's vetoing of changes to the European election law does not protect Polish citizens against similar attempt to change electoral law before 2019 parliamentary elections," said the leader of Modern Party (Nowoczesna) Katarzyna Lubnauer. She added that her party was against the changes proposed by Law and Justice.
"By vetoing this bill, Andrzej Duda has proved that he is able to rise above partisan politics and that he's the President of all Poles," said Kukiz'15 movement MP Marek Jakubiak.
"It's good that this rogue and larcenous European election law was blocked; the President didn't join the bunch of robbers that wanted to steal the election from the Poles," said the Chairman of the Polish People's Party, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz.
Explaining his decision, Andrzej Duda said the rules -- approved by parliament in July -- effectively meant that parties would need as much as 16.5 percent of the vote to win any seats in the European legislature.
"That's moving too far away from the standards of proportional representation," he said.
A strong performance by eurosceptic parties across the EU in the election could have a significant impact on future policy-making in the bloc, which will have 27 members after Britain leaves next March.
Nearly three years since winning a parliamentary vote in 2015, PiS which combines nationalist rhetoric with generous welfare policies, enjoys robust public support in Poland.
For Duda, the support of smaller parties, particularly the anti-establishment Kukiz-15, may be crucial for his re-election prospects in 2020.
An ally of PiS, he has had a rocky relationship with its government and may need broader support to beat his likely rival Donald Tusk, a former Polish prime minister who is now President of the European Council.
Autor: gf / Źródło: TVN24 International, PAP, Reuters