A nun casts her ballot in the first round of the presidential election in Warsaw, Poland. (JANEK SKARZYNSKI / AFP)

Poland will hold its presidential election on June 28 after postponing a contested May ballot due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The announcement comes as support for the candidate of the ruling Law & Justice party, incumbent Andrzej Duda, has been declining as the country struggles with the fallout of the virus outbreak and subsequent lockdown.

Over the past five years, the party consolidated its grip on power, battled the European Union over democratic values while shunning the bloc’s multicultural stance on issues such as gay rights. If Duda loses, the Poland-First makeover would be in jeopardy as the party doesn’t have enough seats in parliament to override a presidential veto.

The election has become a test on the government’s response to the coronavirus crisis, which has hit Poland less than a number of western European nations. So far 1,100 people have died since March

“The campaign will be short, intense and brutal,” said Marek Migalski, a political scientist who had worked with both political camps. “It will be three weeks of living in a haze of information.”

Virus Response

Part of the wave of populist forces emerging across Europe, Law & Justice has been repeatedly sued by the EU for what the bloc sees as undemocratic efforts to subordinate the courts to politicians. The government said it’s ending the reign of a privileged and corrupt “caste” of judges and that Brussels should mind its own business.

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The election has become a test on the government’s response to the coronavirus crisis, which has hit Poland less than a number of western European nations. So far 1,100 people have died since March.

The perception that authorities were quick to roll out stimulus -- which initially boosted Duda’s popularity -- has been been tarnished by allegations of officials breaking their own lockdown rules.

Duda still leads opinion polls but no longer commands the 50% support needed to avoid a run-off against slated for July 12. A survey this week showed him losing a second-round against moderate Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski as well as independent Szymon Holownia, a television personality without political experience.

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‘Stoking Chaos’

Parliament just completed work on the election law -- deciding on a hybrid ballot with polling stations open and the option for mail-in votes for those concerned about catching the virus or unable to leave quarantine.

Law & Justice was forced to back down from holding the vote on May 10, as originally scheduled, after its plan to organize the ballot only through an untested vote-by-mail process was criticized as unsafe and undemocratic by the Supreme Court and international monitors.

Parliamentary Speaker Elzbieta Witek, who declared the election date on Wednesday, said a victory by anyone but Duda would thwart state efforts to rejuvenate the country’s US$586 billion economy.

“A victory by an opposition candidate would exclude cooperation with the government, which guarantees an economic recovery,” she said.