Nowy wymiar politycznego współzawodnictwa: Polska solidarna versus Polska liberalna
A new dimension to the political contest. A solidary Poland vs a liberal one

Summary/Abstract: The article posits a thesis, according to which, a fundamental transformation has occurred in the structure of contest on the Polish political scene since the 2005 parliamentary election. The left-wing vs right-wing opposition axis, alongside which political and electoral rivalry had so far been organised, has been relegated to the background. What has become significant is another, less visible dimension, that of the opposition between a solidary Poland and a liberal one. The article attempts to answer the question as to whether the plane of rivalry then suggested, that is the division of Poland into two, a solidary and a liberal one, has become a permanent fixture on the country’s political scene. The analyses produced in the paper describe to what degree Polish citizens find themselves set in this dimension, and present its social and demographic correlates. Beyond this, relations between the new dimension and the views on socially significant issues, as well as the differentiation of particular parties’ electorates, in terms of their positioning in the new dimension of the contest, are also investigated. The significance of the liberal-solidary Poland dimension is set against that of the left-right wing one. According to the conclusions drawn by the authors, there are many reasons suggesting that the new division in respect of the liberal-solidary Poland has a chance to replace the old, left-right wing one. It may become a genuine social and political split which will no longer divide the country along the left-right wing opposition axis.

• Details
• Contents