Third Way Trzecia Droga | |
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Founded | 27 April 2023 |
Dissolved | 17 June 2025 |
Membership | |
Ideology | Christian democracy Pro-Europeanism |
Political position | Centre-right [5] |
Colors |
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Website | |
trzeciadroga | |
The Third Way (Polish : Trzecia Droga, TD) was a political alliance in Poland that was formed on 27 April 2023, before the 2023 parliamentary election. [6] The coalition's aim was to provide an alternative to both Law and Justice and Civic Platform, the dominant political parties in Poland since the 2000s. The coalition was created by centrist Poland 2050 of Szymon Hołownia and the conservative Polish People's Party, which leads the centre-right Polish Coalition. It was disbanded on 17 June 2025. [7]
Unofficial cooperation between Poland 2050 and Polish People's Party was announced by Szymon Hołownia and Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz on 7 February 2023 as a "common list of things to do". The two parties expressed willingness to cooperate in areas such as the judicial system, education and local government. [8] [9] [10]
On 27 April, the parties announced they'd be running together in the 2023 parliamentary elections, officially revealing the name of the coalition on 15 May. [11] Despite heavy cooperation during the campaign, both parties opted to create two separate political groups in the next Sejm. [6]
Both leaders expressed openness to talks with other political parties and organizations, most notably Wolnościowcy, the Young Poland Association and the conservative wing of Civic Platform. [12] [13] [14]
On 17 June 2025, the Executive Council of the Polish People's Party announced that it had decided to leave Third Way and run separately in the next parliamentary election. Poland 2050 stated that it accepts the decision of its partner and confirmed that it marks the end of the alliance. [15] Political commentators noted that the decision was likely caused by poor performance in the polls - In June 2025, the Third Way was polling around 4%, way short of the 8% electoral threshold for coalitions running for the Sejm. [16]
The Third Way bloc was mostly dominated by conservative, Christian democratic, and moderate liberal politicians. The coalition's goal was to convince former Law and Justice voters to switch to the opposition by creating a centrist or moderate conservative platform on the opposition. [17] [18] Per the manifesto of the Third Way, the coalition wanted to increase budget revenue, reform the school system, implement a climate policy based on renewable energy, and simplify the tax system. The alliance called for a referendum on the legality of abortion and allowed its members to take individual positions on social issues, although most leaned conservative. [19] [20] [21]
The Polish Coalition, led by the Polish People's Party, maintains a conservative and Christian democratic platform, influenced primarily by the Polish People's Party and Centre for Poland (a conservative split from the Civic Platform), whereas the Union of European Democrats represents social-liberal positions as the successor of the Freedom Union. [22] [23] [24] Poland 2050 represented mainly centrist views with visible green politics influence; both Christian democratic and liberal influences were present, mainly due to former Civic Coalition politicians joining the party. [25] [26] However, since 2023, Poland 2050 started being seen as a centre-right, [27] conservative party. [28]
The party's stance towards issues regarding LGBTQ issues was not made explicit. During a radio interview, Szymon Hołownia stated he was opposed to same-sex marriage, while noting that "his movement would follow a rule of voting according to one's conscience" if such question was brought up in parliament. Hołownia described the legalization of civil unions as a more rational alternative. [29]
The name Third Way was primarily a reference to the party being an alternative to both the United Right, which is national conservative, and the Civic Coalition, which is a big tent, catch-all party. Despite some overlap, it did not associate itself with the Third Way political position. [30] [31]
Name | Ideology | Position | Leader | MPs | Senators | MEPs | Sejmiks | Entry | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poland 2050 | Christian democracy Environmentalism Liberalism | Centre-right | Szymon Hołownia | 32 / 460 | 5 / 100 | 1 / 53 | 3 / 552 | 27 April 2023 | |
Polish Coalition [note 1] •Polish People's Party •Union of European Democrats •Centre for Poland | Christian democracy Liberal conservatism | Centre-right to right-wing | Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz | 32 / 460 | 7 / 100 | 2 / 53 | 69 / 552 | 27 April 2023 |
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Government | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2023 | Szymon Hołownia Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz | 3,110,670 | 14.4 (#3) | 65 / 460 | New | PiS Minority (2023) | [32] |
KO-PL2050-KP-NL (2023-present) |
Election | Candidate | First round | Second round | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Votes | % | Votes | % | ||
2025 | Szymon Hołownia | 978,901 | 4.99 (#5) |
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | EP Group |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | Szymon Hołownia Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz | 813,238 | 6.91 (#4) | 3 / 53 | New | EPP / RE |
Election | Leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | Szymon Hołownia Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz | 2,054,152 | 14.3 (#3) | 80 / 552 | New |
Ostatnie działania Polskiego Stronnictwa Ludowego robią wrażenie. - To najbardziej prawicowy PSL od przewrotu majowego (w 1926 roku), gdy jeden z odłamów ruchu ludowego był w rządzie z nacjonalistyczną prawicą - przypomniał prof. Rafał Chwedoruk.
KO's partners in the pro-European coalition government which took power in December, the centre-right Third Way and the Left, got 8.2% and 6.6% respectively.
However, Tusk made those promises as leader of the Civic Coalition (KO), which failed to win an independent majority and had to go into coalition with The Left (Lewica) and centre-right Third Way (Trzecia Droga). Differences between KO and its partners have stymied Tusk's agenda.
The far-right Confederation party received 12.08 percent of the vote, while the two government partners - the centre-right Third Way garnered 6.91 percent and the Left won 6.3 percent.
But Szymon Hołownia, leader of the center-right Poland 2050 party, said Wednesday's confidence vote is only one element of what he called a "restart of hope" and should be followed by an "immediate renewal of the coalition agreement and a government reshuffle."