Civic Platform facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Civic Platform of the Republic of Poland Platforma Obywatelska Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej
Abbreviation	PO
Chairman	Donald Tusk
General Secretary	Marcin Kierwiński
Parliamentary leader	Zbigniew Konwiński [pl]
Spokesperson	Jan Grabiec
Founders	Donald Tusk Andrzej Olechowski Maciej Płażyński
Founded	24 January 2001; 24 years ago (2001-01-24)
Split from	Solidarity Electoral Action Freedom Union Conservative People's Party
Headquarters	ul. Wiejska 12A, 00-490 Warsaw
Membership (2022)	23,727
Ideology	Liberal conservatism Christian democracy
Political position	Centre to centre-right
National affiliation	Civic Coalition Senate Pact 2023 (for 2023 Senate election)
European affiliation	European People's Party
European Parliament group	European People's Party
Colours	Orange      Blue
Sejm	127 / 460
Senate	36 / 100
European Parliament	10 / 52
Regional assemblies	210 / 552
City presidents	40 / 107

The Civic Platform (Polish: Platforma Obywatelska, PO) is a major political party in Poland. It is generally seen as a centre to centre-right party. Since 2021, Donald Tusk has been its leader. He also led the party from 2003 to 2014 and was the President of the European Council from 2014 to 2019.

The party started in 2001. It was formed by groups that left other parties like Solidarity Electoral Action and Freedom Union. In its first election in 2001, it came in second place. Civic Platform was in opposition until 2007. That year, it won the election and Donald Tusk became the Prime Minister.

After the Smolensk air disaster in 2010, Bronisław Komorowski became acting president of Poland. He later won the 2010 presidential election. Donald Tusk continued as Prime Minister until 2014. He then left to become the President of the European Council. The party lost the elections in 2015. In 2020, their candidate, Rafał Trzaskowski, came second in the presidential election.

Civic Platform first started with Christian democratic ideas and supported a free economy. Over time, it became more liberal-conservative. When it was in power, it became more moderate. In the 2010s, the party adopted more modern social views. It strongly supports Poland being a member of the European Union and NATO. It is also part of the European People's Party, a big group of parties in Europe.

The party leads the Civic Coalition, which began in 2018. Civic Platform is very popular in big cities and in the western and northern parts of Poland. Since the 2000s, it has become one of the most important political parties in Poland.

History of Civic Platform

The Civic Platform was created in 2001. It was formed by people who believed in a free economy and Christian democratic ideas. The founders were Andrzej Olechowski, Maciej Płażyński, and Donald Tusk. People sometimes called them "the Three Tenors." Olechowski and Płażyński later left the party. Donald Tusk became the only founder still leading the party.

In the 2001 election, the party won 12.6% of the votes. This made it the biggest opposition party. In the 2002 local elections, Civic Platform worked with another party called Law and Justice.

In 2005, polls showed Civic Platform was very popular. But in the 2005 general election, it came second to Law and Justice (PiS). Many thought Civic Platform and PiS would form a government together. However, they disagreed after the presidential election.

Lech Kaczyński from PiS won the presidential election in 2005. PiS wanted to control important government ministries. Because of this, Civic Platform and PiS could not form a coalition. Instead, PiS formed a government with other parties. Civic Platform then became the main opposition party.

The PiS-led government faced problems in 2007. This led to new elections. On October 21, 2007, Civic Platform won with 41.51% of the votes. They got 209 out of 460 seats in the Sejm and 60 out of 100 seats in the Senate of Poland. Civic Platform then formed a government with the Polish People's Party.

In the 2010 Polish presidential election, after the Smolensk air disaster, Donald Tusk decided not to run. Bronisław Komorowski became the Civic Platform candidate. He won the election, which showed Civic Platform's strong position in Polish politics.

In November 2010, Civic Platform also won local elections. They had won four elections in a row, which was a record in Poland after communism. Civic Platform also won the most votes in the 2011 parliamentary election. They got 39.18% of the votes and 207 seats in the Sejm.

In the 2014 European elections, Civic Platform came in first place. They won 32.13% of the votes and 19 members in the European Parliament. In the 2015 presidential election, Civic Platform supported Bronisław Komorowski. He lost to Andrzej Duda.

In the 2015 parliamentary election, Civic Platform came second to PiS. They won 24.09% of the votes and 138 seats. In the 2019 European elections, Civic Platform was part of the European Coalition. This group came second after PiS. On October 1, 2023, Civic Platform held a large march in Warsaw called "The Million Hearts march."

What Civic Platform Believes In

Civic Platform banner carried during a large march on June 4, 2023.

The Civic Platform is often described as a centrist or centre-right political party. Because of how politics works in Poland, it is also sometimes seen as centre-left because it is a main liberal opponent to the more conservative PiS party. It has been called liberal-conservative, Christian democratic, and liberal. The party strongly supports Poland's membership in the European Union.

Since 2007, when Civic Platform formed the government, the party has slowly changed its views on social issues. Many of its politicians now hold more modern positions. For example, in 2013, the government started a program to help with in vitro fertilization.

Civic Platform was also described as supporting a free economy and careful spending. However, when in power, it increased taxes on some items. It also increased the value-added tax from 22% to 23% in 2011. The party also removed many tax breaks. To help with the climate crisis, Civic Platform has promised to stop using coal for energy in Poland by 2040.

After becoming the main opposition party, Civic Platform became even more open on social issues. This is especially true for younger politicians in the party, like Rafał Trzaskowski, the mayor of Warsaw. The party has also started to support some social programs that were first introduced by PiS.

Who Supports Civic Platform

Civic Platform's support is strong in the west and north of Poland. Areas that voted for Bronisław Komorowski in 2010 are shown in orange.

As of 2020, Civic Platform is most popular in large cities. It is also supported by people with higher education and those in management jobs. The party's main supporters are middle-aged, well-educated professionals and office workers from the middle and upper-middle classes.

More women than men tend to vote for Civic Platform. The party is very popular among directors, managers, specialists, business owners, and administrative workers. However, it is less popular among manual workers, young voters, farmers, students, and unemployed people. The party does best among voters aged 30 to 59. It is least popular among the oldest and youngest voters.

Civic Platform is very popular in big cities (with 500,000 people or more). Almost half of voters in these cities support the party. Support is still strong in medium-sized cities. However, it drops a lot in small towns and the countryside. On average, only about 15% of rural voters support the party.

Most of the party's supporters are Roman Catholics. Many of these voters attend religious services regularly. Civic Platform is supported by Catholics who are more liberal or moderate. They often do not want the government to force religious rules on people. This fits with the party's general approach to religion, which combines some traditional views with modern social ideas.

As of 2020, most Civic Platform supporters see themselves as liberal conservatives, centrists, or moderate conservatives. The party's supporters are fairly split between different political views. About 35% identify as centrist, 28% as left-wing, and 24% as right-wing.

Civic Platform is very popular among voters who want more cooperation with the European Union. About 80% of the party's supporters feel this way. The party is generally supported by moderate voters. On economic issues, the party is supported by both pro-business voters and those who want more social welfare.

The party also has strong support from people who want more power for local governments. Over 90% of Civic Platform supporters believe that local governments should have more power. They think the national government should give more power to local areas. The party is supported by Silesian regionalists and has worked with Silesian parties. Local politicians from Civic Platform in Silesia are often linked to Silesian regionalism. The party also has support from the Kashubians, another regional group. Donald Tusk, a co-founder, has supported an independent Kashubia in the past.

In March 2023, Donald Tusk said that Silesian should be seen as a language, not just a dialect. He noted it has its own literature and grammar. He promised to make Silesian an official language in Upper Silesia. Tusk also said he was a regionalist.

Leaders of Civic Platform

No.	Image	Name	Time in Office
1		Maciej Płażyński	October 18, 2001 – June 1, 2003
2		Donald Tusk	June 1, 2003 – November 8, 2014
3		Ewa Kopacz	November 8, 2014 – January 26, 2016
4		Grzegorz Schetyna	January 26, 2016 – January 29, 2020
5		Borys Budka	January 29, 2020 – July 3, 2021
(2)		Donald Tusk	since July 3, 2021

Election Results

Civic Platform has taken part in many elections in Poland and Europe. Here are some of their results:

Sejm (Lower House of Parliament)

Senate (Upper House of Parliament)

Presidential Elections

Regional Assemblies

European Parliament Elections

Voivodeship Marshals (Regional Governors)

Name	Image	Region	Date Started
Elżbieta Polak		Lubusz Voivodeship	November 29, 2010
Marek Woźniak		Greater Poland Voivodeship	October 10, 2005
Piotr Całbecki		Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship	January 24, 2006
Olgierd Geblewicz		West Pomeranian Voivodeship	December 7, 2010
Mieczysław Struk		Pomeranian Voivodeship	February 22, 2010
Andrzej Buła		Opole Voivodeship	November 12, 2013

Important Politicians

• 

  Bronisław Komorowski, former President of Poland

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  Ewa Kopacz, former Prime Minister of Poland

• 

  Donald Tusk, Prime Minister of Poland and former President of the European Council

• 

  Jerzy Buzek, former President of the European Parliament

• 

  Grzegorz Schetyna, former Minister of Foreign Affairs and party leader

• 

  Borys Budka, former Minister of Justice and party leader

• 

  Radosław Sikorski, former Minister of Foreign Affairs

• 

  Bogdan Borusewicz, former Marshal of the Senate

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  Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, former Mayor of Warsaw

• Rafał Trzaskowski.jpg

  Rafał Trzaskowski, Mayor of Warsaw

See also

In Spanish: Plataforma Cívica para niños

• List of Civic Platform politicians
• Politics of Poland
• List of political parties in Poland
• Liberalism in Poland