President Karol Nawrocki vetoes political advertising and electoral laws

President Karol Nawrocki has vetoed legislation concerning the regulation of political advertising and amendments to the electoral code. The vetoed political advertising law was intended to establish a national oversight system to comply with EU regulations regarding the transparency and targeting of political ads. Under the proposed law, the National Electoral Commission (PKW) would have played a central role, with the authority to impose administrative fines of up to 6% of a sponsor's or provider's annual revenue.

In his justification, the President raised concerns regarding the independence of oversight bodies, the heavy burden of new competencies placed on the PKW, and the imprecise definition of political advertising. He specifically noted that granting the PKW power to impose penalties during election campaigns could create a chilling effect on public debate.

Additionally, the President vetoed amendments to the electoral code that would have allowed the National Electoral Commission to adjust the number of parliamentary mandates to reflect demographic shifts. This amendment aimed to ensure that the distribution of seats more accurately reflects where citizens actually live, preventing regions with declining populations from maintaining disproportionate representation. Senator Waldy Dzikowski criticized the veto, arguing that the President's reasoning was flawed.