A new poll for Polish Radio reveals that breakaway politician Janusz Palikot would gain enough seats to enter parliament with his new party.

Janusz Palikot, who resigned from Civic Platform last week after internal rifts in the ruling party, gained 5.1 percent in the poll, just over the required 5 percent to enter parliament. A similar poll conducted last week showed Palikot receiving 3.8 percent of the ballot.

If elections were to have been held over the weekend, 38 percent of Poles would vote for the ruling Civic Platform, while Law and Justice would receive 27.3 percent of the ballot. The Democratic Left Alliance would gain 14.4 percent.

Junior coalition partners, the Polish Peasants’ Party gained 4.7 percent, thus discounting them from parliament.

Turnout would amount to 56 percent, the poll by Homo Homini shows. The poll was conducted among 1091 respondents.

Palikot’s programme similar to leftist policies

Commenting on the opinion poll, Democratic Left Alliance leader Grzegorz Napieralski told Polish Radio that many of Janusz Palikot’s policies conincide with his party’s political programme.

At Palikot’s congress held last weekend, the maverick politician announced that he is for an end of religious instruction in schools and of state subsidies for church institutions, free access to contraceptives and registration of same-sex partnerships.

Napieralski told Polish Radio that party member Ryszard Kalisz, who was present at Palikot’s congress in Warsaw, lost his position in the Democratic Left Alliance’s board because of his attendance there.

Kalisz, who is rumoured to become secretary of Palikot’s new party, lost a vote of confidence among Democratic Left Alliance members on Saturday, forcing him to leave the party’s elite. (jb)