One of the biggest surprises of the election evening was the result of the Confederacy. Whether Mentzen's final result is somewhat higher or lower than 6.2% we can talk about defeat. Especially with the loud announcements. All points to the fact that a organization that saw itself as a 3rd force and promised to “turn over the table” will not play a more crucial function in the upcoming term.
Mentzen himself admitted this during the election evening. "This score is exit poll, poll. The final results can inactive change a small bit. But there's no request to hide that much will never change and that we have failed. We were going to turn over this table and everything indicates that it failed." “We fought an unequal fight against everyone. Against PiS and Platform, against TVP and TVN. And it looks like we lost.”
I appreciate the fact that the Confederate leader saw his own failure. However, seeking its causes solely on the political side of opponents is simply a misunderstanding. due to the fact that the Confederates did not quit anything to squander the gigantic support possible they enjoyed at the turn of July and August. They made almost all the mistakes that were possible.
The first, essential for the current result, Confederates made a long time before registering the list of candidates. It was a departure from the party's perfect line for the centre. In 2019, erstwhile the Confederate debuted, the politicians of various, until late disputed options jointly sought the alleged anti-system electorate. The programme from only 4 years ago can be summarised in the alleged "five Mentzen". "We do not want Jews, homosexuals, abortions, taxes and the European Union" - they preached in a not-subtle, yet expressive kind leaders of the fresh party. This left no uncertainty as to their position on the political stage.
For 4 years, a lot has changed. Janusz Korwin-Mikke retired to political retirement, and the function of the leader of the freedom movement (and in fact the full Confederation) took over after him Sławomir Mentzen. And he rapidly introduced a fresh order, immediately turning towards the political center. From the slogan "we do not want Jews, homosexuals, abortions, taxes and the European Union" remained only "we do not want taxes", and this is very moderate. "They were never my views," said the Confederate leader recently, commenting on the statements of politicians reminding him of the alleged 5 Mentzen.
Equally extremist volts could be observed in relation to 1 of the most crucial issues that is the war in Ukraine and the dangers it poses. “I am just pointing out that we should not be besides prone to Ukrainian propaganda. Our business is not identical to Ukrainian. Ukraine is committed to bringing Poland into the war" - argued Mentzen-pretendent until recently. “I do not see the Ukrainianization of Poland”, “I have long been talking about the request to liberalise labour law for Ukrainians” – the present Mentzen-president amazed his fans.
Such a short-term approach allowed for the acquisition of fresh voters, while increasingly discouraging the authentically ideological electorate. This in view of the tightening of the course of the Law and Justice towards Ukraine (apparent and cyclical) began to drift distant from the Confederation. Therefore, in the end of Mentzen's campaign, Bosak and the company, alternatively of fighting for the votes of fresh voters, had to focus on maintaining support in their strict electorate.
Another mistake, seemingly trivial, and indeed importantly affecting the election result, was the removal from the list of popular independent candidates. At a time erstwhile the Confederates were serious about getting 2 tickets in each district, there was a real purgatory. People like B. president of Stalowa Wola Andrzej Szlęzak, popular youtuber Sebastian Pitoń or the activist of the halt NOP Justyna Socha movement were removed from the letter. On the 1 hand, they disturbed local organization apparatus due to the fact that they were natural contenders for parliamentary seats. On the another hand, they were not in the hands of the Confederate authorities, for by their independency they would be hard to control. So they were said goodbye, usually in an ugly style. However, with the candidates, voters left. In any districts respective hundred, in others respective thousand. Together, that would have had a lot to do with the result.
Further Confederacy errors can be mentioned with almost 1 breath.
The dog food thing. An thought so absurd, it's unbelievable. An awkward message from 1 of the candidates was skillfully excavated by the competition and blown to the level of inability. Confederate leaders were incapable to cope with this crisis. alternatively of rapidly and skillfully cutting the subject, they undertook an effort to rationalize (Sosnier). It was water on the mill of anti-Confederal propaganda. The motive for eating dogs became a viral that persecuted the Confederacy until the end of the campaign.
Another suicide shot was the performance of Janusz Korwin-Mikke at a gathering of the Patriarchat Foundation. The very presence of the erstwhile leader of the Confederacy at a gathering where women's social roles come down to home inventory positions is simply a nightmare political mistake. However, JKM was not just a passive observer there. He took the level there and advocated taking women's voting rights.
It wasn't the last or worst of Korwin. An aged politician recalled himself in the end of the campaign. In a video published on social media, he referred to the alleged Pandora Gate, or pedophile scandal among youtubers. The politician explained that it was up to the teenager to decide whether they were "mature" and whether they were 15. In turn, the man – as Korwin-Mikke argued – the man has the right... to make a mistake.
However, JKM was not alone. In the fight against his own electorate, Krzysztof Bosak bravely seconded him. "We condemn Russia's criminal attack on Ukraine. We express support for the defending country and, of course, we compose that so that Ukraine does not lose this war. (...) We want Russia all the worst”, he announced from the heights of his life experience. By thus removing tens of thousands of possible voters from the ellipse of our weekly. And that's all a fewer days before the election.
This kind of unforced errors on a smaller or larger scale can be mentioned here tens more. All, from accepting letters and making 1 of Przemysław Wipler's run faces to Mentzen's drunken performances, were totally unnecessary and easy to avoid. With minimum concentration and minimum professionalism. But they did.
This could be summed up by the corvinist “no harm is being done to the 1 who wants to”, but regret remains. Of course, not Confederate leaders. They will have a parliamentary diet and a organization grant to rub their tears. The regret of wasted energy of thousands of honest people who dreamed of a better Poland. Regret their work and resources. The grief of lost hope. Maybe, despite the blows, she won't die. The last 1 dies.
Przemysław Piasta
