Treść książki
Przejdź do opcji czytnikaPrzejdź do nawigacjiPrzejdź do informacjiPrzejdź do stopki
ChapterI◆THECONSTITUTIONALFOUNDATIONSOFTHEREPUBLICOFPOLAND’S…
Senate’spositiononthebillbyanabsolutemajorityofvotes(i.e.,bythesame
majoritythatisneededtogivethegovernmentavoteofconfidence).Ifthereis
noclearmajorityintheSejm,theSenatemayimposeitspositiononit.The
Presidenthasgreatpowerinlegislativeproceedings.Hemayvetoadraftbill,
whichtheSejm(withouttheparticipationoftheSenate)mayoverthrowwith
a3/5majorityofvotes31.TheSejmperformsthecontrollingfunction(Art.95
para.2),anditalsohasmorepowersintermsofcreativefunction.Hence,the
Polishmodelofthebicameralparliamentisreferredtoasasymmetric
bicameralism.
DespitetheweakeningofthePresident’spositionbytheauthorsof
the1997Constitution,someelementsofthepresidencyhaveremained.Itis
primarilyaboutthegeneralpresidentialelectionandhisnumerous
prerogatives,i.e.,actsexemptfromcountersignaturerequirement.However,
thePresidentisalsovestedwithconsiderablepowersthatprovethatheis
exercisingpoliticalarbitration.TheseincludeshorteningtheSejm’stermof
office,orderingareferendum(withtheconsentoftheSenate)andlegislative
veto32.
Thestabilisationofthepartysystemhasbeenconduciveto
strengtheningtherationalisedparliamentarysystemformanyyears.Until
2005,themostcrucialaxisofthepoliticaldivisionwasthedisputebetweenthe
post-communistleft(representedbytheDemocraticLeftAlliance)andthe
centristandright-wingpartiesoriginatingfromtheuSolidarity”movement,
whichwasthecentralelementoftheanti-communistoppositioninthe1980s.
Thesituationchangeddramaticallyin2005whenparliamentaryelections
(wonbytheright-wingLawandJusticeparty)andpresidentialelections(won
byLechKaczyński,supportedbyLawandJustice)wereheldwithinafew
weeksofeachother.Atthattime,themostcriticaloppositionpartywasthe
CivicPlatform,alsoderivedfromuSolidarity”andassociatedwiththecentreof
thePolishpoliticalscene.Ontheotherhand,theDemocraticLeftAlliance,
whichwasinpowerfrom1993-1997andthenfrom2001-2005,has
31S.Bożyk,TheStructuralPositionoftheSejmoftheRepublicofPolandintheLightof
ConstitutionalPrinciplesofPoliticalSystem,[in:]EvolutionofConstitutionalismintheSelected
StatesofCentralandEasternEurope,eds.J.Matwiejuk,K.Prokop,Temida2,Białystok2010,
pp.143-144.
32Cf.J.Szymanek,Arbitrażpolitycznygłowypaństwa,DomWydawniczyuElipsa”,Warsaw2009,
p.108etseq.
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