Morawiecki’s Rozwój Plus debuts with Warsaw ‘grill’ as Polish right fractures after PiS split

Split becomes formal

The rupture inside Poland’s largest opposition party accelerated after the PiS Political Committee issued an ultimatum on 15 July demanding all its parliamentarians sign a declaration that they do not belong to associations conducting political activity, under threat of expulsion. The deadline passed on 23 July. The following day, PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński declared that more than 30 MPs had resigned their party membership by failing to comply. On 28 July the Political Committee did not directly expel them but referred the cases to party disciplinary spokesman Karol Karski for individual review. Nevertheless, the politicians around the Rozwój Plus association considered themselves already out of PiS, and on 29 July Morawiecki formally announced the creation of a new parliamentary club.

The club, called Rozwój Plus, comprises 40 deputies and one senator, making it the third-largest caucus in the current Sejm. PiS is left with 147 deputies, down from 186. MEP Piotr Mueller said the group’s immediate focus was on policy reports already presented on migration and demography, with the next large event scheduled for 15 October.

Presidential palace urges unity

President Karol Nawrocki’s spokesman Rafał Leśkiewicz broke the palace’s silence on Friday, telling Wirtualna Polska that the president stands for the unity of conservative circles because that is what won elections in the past.

The president stands on the position that unity of conservative circles is the foundation. When there was unity, the right won elections. Both PiS and Rozwój Plus can count on the president meeting with them, treating the new political environment in the Sejm as a natural partner for talks.

He added that the president wants calm on the right side of the political scene and will talk with each of these circles.

Grill festival launches Rozwój Plus publicly

The “Rozwój+Wy” event, described by organisers as a festival of ideas, ran from midday to midnight on 31 July on Warsaw’s Praga district and combined debates with a grill and table tennis. In his opening speech, Morawiecki told the crowd that Poland “must enter new paths, because the world we have known is passing into the past.”

History does not reward those who cower, who subordinate themselves to others, who let themselves be patted on the back instead of trying to find a good development path in this jungle of new rules. If what gathered you here is that faith in Poland, in our moral principles, faith in the future, in Poles, then you are in the right place. The Rozwój Plus association is the right place for you too. We have entered new tracks, a new road, and we will walk it boldly.

He also stressed that the association was substantive and proposed real solutions instead of shouting. Panels addressed topics from geopolitics and security through demography to the left-wing perspective on development, with guests including former Confederation MP Robert Winnicki, publicist Bronisław Wildstein, General Jarosław Gromadziński, MP Paulina Matysiak, and chess champion Garry Kasparov. The closing discussion featured Morawiecki alongside former chief of general staff Rajmund Andrzejczak and former Civic Platform politician Jan Rokita.

Dismissals from the ruling camp, disappointment from an ex-ally

A lawmaker from the governing Civic Coalition, Konrad Frysztak, dismissed the split as a “low-quality sitcom” and, holding up a photo of Kaczyński seated beside Morawiecki at a cabinet meeting, insisted nothing had really changed.

For me it is irrelevant whether it is PiS, crypto-PiS or Rozwój PiS. It’s still the same PiS. Mateusz Morawiecki is not independent.

Former KO MP Marcin Józefaciuk attended the demography panel but left disappointed, noting that the word “man” was mentioned only once or twice while the discussion centred heavily on women, wives, mothers and child benefits.

During the panel the word ‘man’ was said once or twice – in the context of male loneliness. The word ‘father’ also appeared once – connected with a proposal for six months’ protection against dismissal after a child’s birth. There was, however, a lot about women, wives, mothers and benefits tied to women raising children.

He acknowledged that the accompanying report did include several elements addressing men, such as andrology diagnostics, the father’s job protection and a split of the Family Retirement Contribution between both parents, but he found no systemic response to mental health crises, shorter male life expectancy, addiction, homelessness, or educational gaps affecting boys.

Poll hints at electoral viability

A survey published by Rzeczpospolita on Friday found that almost 4 in 10 Poles believe a party led by Mateusz Morawiecki would enter the Sejm. The belief is strongest among younger voters, high earners, and residents of large cities, the newspaper reported, suggesting the brand built during his premiership carries electoral weight even as the split with PiS forces a realignment on the right.