Independent election bid

Former Polish prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced on 2 October 2026 that his political association, Rozwój Plus, will contest next year's parliamentary elections independently. Writing on social platform X, Morawiecki described the movement as an initiative focused on citizen concerns, noting that a political party remains merely a tool rather than an end in itself. Although Morawiecki had previously pledged in early August 2026 to formally register a political party by 15 October 2026, leadership sources indicated that formal party creation has been postponed by several months to prioritize regional structure building, policy reports, and broader political consultations.

“Yes, I want to be prime minister.”

Morawiecki confirmed his prime ministerial ambitions during an appearance on Polsat News, asserting that Rozwój Plus can break existing political sanitary cordons and establish coalition capabilities to unseat the current government.

Economic critique of PiS and Tusk

In an interview published on 3 October 2026, Morawiecki outlined his economic divergence from his former party, Law and Justice (PiS), and current Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Morawiecki criticized PiS for what he described as excessive statist thinking and irresponsible fiscal pledges, arguing that public finance reform requires practical market knowledge.

“I see among colleagues from PiS a very nonchalant and easy tossing into the public sphere of dozens more billions of zlotys to spend. Anyone can spend. My teenage kids can spend any money they get. But money does not come from an ATM. You have to earn it first.”

Morawiecki also directed criticism at Donald Tusk, calling him an economic pest and asserting that piles of unsigned documents are accumulating on the prime minister's desk. Asked about former Orlen chief executive and current member of the European Parliament Daniel Obajtek serving as a primary economic face for PiS, Morawiecki responded that Obajtek had chosen his own path.

Fiscal warnings and policy platform

Morawiecki warned that Poland risks severe financial instability without strict budgetary discipline, comparing the condition of provincial Poland to the industrial decline of the American rust belt.

“In the United Kingdom, financial markets were able to bring down the government within about six weeks because they decided a serious error was made in tax and budgetary policy.”

He noted that the average public finance deficit stood at 2.8% of GDP during his term in office, contrasting it with current levels that he stated are more than twice as high and reaching 1.5 trillion zlotys nominally. The Rozwój Plus platform proposes replacing the 800 Plus child benefit with a parental salary, ensuring military spending stays within the domestic economy, and releasing a detailed public finance plan in a book scheduled for release in November 2026.

Origins of the parliamentary split

The split between Morawiecki and PiS chairman Jarosław Kaczyński culminated in late July 2026 following an internal party ultimatum. On 15 July 2026, the PiS leadership ordered parliamentarians to resign from external political associations by the evening of 23 July 2026 or face expulsion. While Jacek Sasin complied and dissolved his association Po pierwsze Polska, Morawiecki and more than 40 allied lawmakers refused to submit the declarations.

The dissenting deputies formed an independent Rozwój Plus parliamentary club after being referred to the party disciplinary officer, with Kaczyński subsequently noting that thirty-some deputies had left the party. Recent opinion polls place public support for Rozwój Plus at approximately 6%, with other surveys placing the formation below the statutory parliamentary threshold.