New survey shows Alexander Kwaśniewski ranked as Poland’s best president, while current leader Karol Nawrocki places second.
Kwaśniewski Leads in Presidential Rankings
A survey conducted for Onet asked: “Which president of Poland do you rate best today?” Alexander Kwaśniewski received the most responses. 29.6% of respondents rated the former president as the best. This result confirms his consistently strong position in public memory and assessments of his 1995-2005 presidency.
Nawrocki’s Unexpected Second Place
Karol Nawrocki came in second with 25.1%. This result is particularly significant, considering that Nawrocki has been in office for a relatively short time. His high position among former presidents may indicate that a significant portion of Poles already rate his presidency very highly.
On the other hand, it may also show that it’s easier for Poles to evaluate current political achievements than historical ones, which have often faded from memory.
Duda Secure on Podium
Andrzej Duda placed third, with 12.4% of respondents selecting him. This result clearly stands apart from the first two positions but gives Duda a secure place on the podium.
Former Presidents Outside Top Three
Outside the podium were other former presidents. Lech Kaczyński was selected as the best president by 8.9% of respondents. This result shows that despite the passage of time and strong political divisions, his presidency still has a clear group of supporters.
Lech Wałęsa ranked lower, with 5.4% of respondents selecting him. The first president of the Third Republic, a symbol of the systemic transformation, performed worse in the survey than his successors, which may reflect a more critical assessment of his presidency than his historical role.
Bronisław Komorowski received the lowest score. Only 4% of respondents considered him the best president of Poland. This is the weakest result in the entire ranking, showing the persistent image problems of the former president in public assessments.
No Opinion and Uncertain Responses
It’s worth noting the responses that did not name any candidate. 7.8% of survey participants chose “none of them.” This indicates that nearly one in twelve respondents does not consider any of the previous presidencies worthy of the highest rating.
Meanwhile, 6.8% of respondents marked the answer “hard to say.” This group may include both people less interested in politics and those who have difficulty with a clear assessment of the achievements of individual presidents.
Nawrocki’s Trust Ratings
Data on the current assessment of Karol Nawrocki’s presidency is particularly noteworthy. Since taking office, he has been recording very good results in trust surveys. In the January IBRiS survey, he received 47.7% trust, confirming his strong position in public opinion.
At the same time, data shows that after the record result in November, when trust in the president reached 51.8%, a downward trend appeared in the following months. In December, this figure dropped to 49.3%, and in January it remained at a lower level. Although these are still high values, the dynamics of change are carefully observed by political commentators.
Polarized Public Opinion
Social divisions are even more visible in another January survey – this time by SW Research for Onet. When asked whether Karol Nawrocki meets expectations as president of Poland, 41.8% of respondents answered affirmatively.
41.4% of respondents held the opposite view. The difference is minimal and within the margin of error, showing an almost perfect division of opinion in society. This is one of the most polarized presidential assessments in recent years and at the same time evidence that Nawrocki arouses equally strong support as opposition.
