1928 Polish parliamentary election

none Poland 1919 legislative 1922 Polish parliamentary election 1922 1930 Polish parliamentary election 1930 78.5%2018 Polska 1918–2018 https://stat.gov.pl/files/gfx/portalinformacyjny/pl/defaultaktualnosci/5501/34/1/1/polska_19182018.pdff Warsaw 29 July 2026 InternetArchiveBot All 444 seats in the Sejm yes 1928 03 04 (Sejm) yes 1928 03 11 (Senat) Slawek_i_Daszynski.png 800 120 160 40 83 center Walery Sławek November 1927 Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government A9A9A9 1 – Warsaw Did not exist 125 125 2,399,438 21.0% Dr. Zymunt Marek LCCN2014719388.jpg 165 120 160 10 10 center Zygmunt Marek 2 February 1926 75% (as chairman of PPS caucus) Polish Socialist Party FF0000 44 - Nowy Sącz 41 64 23 1,482,097 13.0% Izaak Grunbaum.jpg 120 120 160 0 0 center Yitzhak Gruenbaum 1922 Bloc of National Minorities FCE883 1 - Warsaw 66 55 11 1,439,568 12.6% Malinowski Maksymilian.jpg 125 120 160 8 3 center Maksymilian Malinowski 1925 Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie" 4CBB17 27 - Zamość 49 40 9 834,710 7.3% Kozicki.jpg 125 120 160 7 2 center Stanisław Kozicki 1923 BKN 323228 Senate - Lublin area 98(163 as Chjena) 38 60 925,570 8.1% Premier Wincenty Witos i Władysław Kiernik.jpg 600 60 160 20 240 center Józef Chaciński.png 240 60 160 20 82 center Wincenty WitosJózef Chaciński 1918 (Witos)1927 (Chaciński) PBK 00A693 84 - Tarnów (Witos) 24 l.p. Seat 24 on the National List (Chaciński) Did not exist 34 34 770,891 6.8% 400px Results by constituency Prime Minister Józef Piłsudski Independent politician Kazimierz Bartel Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government Parliamentary elections were held in Poland on 4 March 1928, with Senate elections held a week later on 11 March.Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p1491 978-3-8329-5609-7 The Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government, a coalition of the Sanation faction - won the highest number of seats in the Sejm (125 out of 444) and 48 out of 111 in the Senate–in both cases, short of a majority. Unlike latter elections during the Sanation era, opposition parties were allowed to campaign with only a few hindrances, and gained a significant number of seats. The 1928 election is often considered the last fully free election in the Second Polish Republic.A. J. Groth, Polish Elections 1919-1928, Slavic Review, Vol. 24, No. 4. (Dec., 1965), pp. 653-665. JSTOR, Last accessed on 14 April 2007Kenneth Ka-Lok Chan, Poland at the Crossroads: The 1993 General Election, Europe-Asia Studies, Vol. 47, No. 1. (1995), pp. 123-145. Last accessed on 14 April 2007 Background The 1928 elections were the first elections after Józef Piłsudski's May Coup in 1926. Thirty-four parties took part in the 1928 elections.TIME article on 1928 Polish elections from Mar. 19, 1928 Last accessed on 14 April 2007 Piłsudski was supported by the Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government (BBWR) led by Walery Sławek, which campaigned for a more authoritative government, declaring its total support for Piłsudski and proclaiming itself to be a patriotic, non-partisan and pro-government formation. Other factions in contemporary Polish politics and their primary parties included: the Left, consisting of the Polish Socialist Party of Ignacy Daszyński; the Communist Party, two Polish People's Party factions (the Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie" of Jan Woźnicki and Stronnictwo Chłopskie of Jan Dąbski); the Right (endecja, represented by the Popular National Union of Stanisław Głąbiński); the center, composed of the PSL faction, Christian Democracy of Wojciech Korfanty and the National Workers' Party of Adam Chadzyński; and finally, the Minorities, represented by the Bloc of National Minorities. The government applied much pressure to ensure victory for its candidates. Propaganda media were distributed, Sanation supporters tried to break up opposition rallies and some opposition lists and candidates were declared invalid by ostensibly neutral government institutions. Pressure was put on state employees to vote for the BBWR and to participate in its electoral campaign. Public funds were diverted to the BBWR, which had ready use of government facilities. Despite these irregularities, opposition parties could still campaign and put forward candidates, and the results were not falsified. For these reasons, the 1928 election is reckoned as the last even partially free election held during the Second Polish Republic, and the last free elections of any sort held in Poland until 1989 (or 1991). The last three elections held before World War II were all rigged in favour of the Sanation forces (the BBWR in 1930 and 1935, the Camp of National Unity in 1938). By the time of the first elections after the return of peace, in 1947, a Communist regime was rapidly consolidating. Results Sejm 350px Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government 2399032 125 New Polish Socialist Party 1481279 64 +23 Bloc of National Minorities 1438725 55 –11 Catholic-National Bloc 925774 38 – #323228 Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie" 834448 41 –8 Polish Catholic Bloc 770891 34 – #00A693 Peasant Party 618503 25 – Bloc of Ukrainian Socialist and Peasant-Worker's Parties (URP–USDP) 268677 9 – Jewish National Union in Lesser Poland 240780 6 –12 National Workers' Party 228088 11 –7 Workers' and Peasants' Unity (Communists) 217298 5 +3 Sel-Rob 179536 4 – Catholic Union of Western Lands 193323 3 – General-Jewish National Bloc (Folkspartei–Aguda) 174978 0 – Polish National Labour Bloc 146946 4 – Sel-Rob Left 143475 3 – Agrarian Union 135276 3 – Ruska (RNU–RAO–RPO) 133196 1 – General Jewish Labour Bund in Poland 80219 0 0 Monarchist All-estate Organization 53623 0 – Ukrainian Labour Party 44919 1 – Radical Peasant Party 44560 0 –4 Poale Zion 30945 0 – Independent Socialist Labour Party 21929 0 – Ukrainian National Union 8887 0 – Local lists 592941 12 – Independent 320141 0 14970394 Sejm i Senat 1928-1933 p.229–230Tadeusz Rzepecki Karol (1865–1931) Rzepecki 1928 Sejm i Senat 1928-1933: podręcznik zawierający wyniki wyborów w województwach, okręgach i powiatach, podobizny posłów sejmowych i senatorów, statystyki i mapy poglądowe https://www.wbc.poznan.pl/dlibra/doccontent?id=97608 Biblioteka Instytutu Historii UAM 229–230 Senate Nonpartisan Bloc for Cooperation with the Government 1842537 48 – #D40000 Bloc of National Minorities 1063888 21 –2 Polish Socialist Party 714956 10 +3 Popular National Union 589005 9 – #808080 Polish Catholic Bloc 426179 6 – #00A693 Polish People's Party "Wyzwolenie" 391979 7 –1 Peasant Party 274097 3 – Bloc of Ukrainian Socialist and Peasant-Worker's Parties (URP–USDP) 148431 1 – National Workers' Party 143806 2 –1 Polish National Labour Bloc 132039 1 –1 Jewish National Union in Lesser Poland 123090 1 –3 General-Jewish National Bloc (Folkspartei–Aguda) 94609 0 – Sel-Rob 80502 1 – Communist Party of Poland 48346 0 0 Ruska (RNU–RAO–RPO) 38065 0 – Agrarian Union 36118 0 – Catholic Union of Western Lands 12749 0 – Radical Peasant Party 6423 0 0 Monarchist All-estate Organization 4661 0 – Local lists 217920 1 – Independent 116931 0 10184727 Sejm i Senat 1928-1933 p.242, 245Tadeusz Rzepecki Karol (1865–1931) Rzepecki 1928 Sejm i Senat 1928-1933: podręcznik zawierający wyniki wyborów w województwach, okręgach i powiatach, podobizny posłów sejmowych i senatorów, statystyki i mapy poglądowe https://www.wbc.poznan.pl/dlibra/doccontent?id=97608 Biblioteka Instytutu Historii UAM 242, 245 Ethnoreligious voting analysis According to Kopstein and Wittenberg, 45% of the majority Catholic population voted for non-revolutionary left-wing parties, 16% for the Pro-Pilsudski bloc and 15% for right-wing parties.Jeffrey S. Kopstein & Jason Wittenberg. "Who voted communist? Reconsidering the social bases of radicalism in interwar Poland." Slavic Review 62.1 (2003): pp87-109 The 1928 vote has been studied in relation to the Zydokomuna narrative which portrays the major ethnic minority blocs of Jews as well as Ukrainians and Belarusians as fifth columns and reservoirs of communist support. After the 1921 these minorities were totally excluded from cabinet positions and parties self-identifying as "Polish" refused to form governments with minority interest parties although they had captured 24% of the vote together in 1922, which among other factors led to ethnic polarization. Elements of Poland's pre-1918 political elite had discussed the creation of a federal arrangement with regional autonomy for minorities, but after 1922 these plans were scrapped in favor of a unitary state with "less than adequate protection of cultural and education rights for the countries Germans, Ukrainians, Belarusians and Jews".Kopstein, Jeffrey S., and Jason Wittenberg. "Who voted communist? Reconsidering the social bases of radicalism in interwar Poland." Slavic Review 62.1 (2003): 87-109. Pages 99-100, 108. Soviet propaganda tried to convince Belarusians, Ukrainians and Jews that their cultures and national aspirations could be better protected within the Soviet state.Kopstein, Jeffrey S., and Jason Wittenberg. "Who voted communist? Reconsidering the social bases of radicalism in interwar Poland." Slavic Review 62.1 (2003): 87-109. Page 100. However, the response to this Soviet overture varied between Ukrainian Uniates, Ukrainian Orthodox, Belarusian Orthodox, and Jews. All four groups, according to analysis by Kopstein and Wittenberg, faced the problem of how best to react to a centralizing and nationalizing state which at various points pursued policies of either accommodation, assimilation or discrimination, with the response of the minorities varying between attempts at "exiting" the state, trying to persuade the state to change its behavior, or by asserting loyalty to the state.Kopstein, Jeffrey S., and Jason Wittenberg. "Who voted communist? Reconsidering the social bases of radicalism in interwar Poland." Slavic Review 62.1 (2003): 87-109. Quote is commented. thumb|200px|Jozef Pilsudski came to power in 1926 but is thought to have let the 1928 elections be mostly fair aside from some suppression in ethnically Belarusian regions. He received significant support from minority voters, especially the Jewish minority. The combination of discrimination, Soviet interference, and the lack of a prior national movement radicalized Belarusian politics such that support for centre-left and minority interest parties gave way to the heaviest support for communists. Overall the 44% of the Orthodox vote that went to communists is estimated to also have included the Ukrainian Orthodox, who based on data from Volhynia and Polesia are estimated to have yielded 25% of their vote to communist parties, meaning the Belarusian level of support must have been higher than 44%. On the other hand, Uniate Ukrainians and Jews were mostly unconvinced by Soviet overtures. The Uniates instead held to minority interest parties. Among the Jewish population, support for minority parties fell from 65% in 1922 to 33%, while a plurality of Jews voted for Pilsudski's bloc. Despite the prevalent "Judeo-communist" myth, and although Jews were prominent in the leadership of communist institutions, 93% of Jews did not support communists at "the height of communist appeal" before Stalin consolidated absolute power, and furthermore only 14% of the communist vote came from Jews, less than the 16% which was from Catholics. Instead, Jews were the strongest ethnic bastion of support for the Pilsudski government, moreso than both other minorities and the Polish majority, with no significant regional differences in the political behavior. Kopstein and Wittenberg argue their data show that "Even in the face of both public and private prejudice... Most Jews were thus politically neither "internationalist" nor ethnically exclusionary, as a large vote For the minority parties in 1928 would have in- dicated. Rather they were casting their lot with the Polish state."Kopstein, Jeffrey S., and Jason Wittenberg. "Who voted communist? Reconsidering the social bases of radicalism in interwar Poland." Slavic Review 62.1 (2003): 87-109. Pages 105-106. An alternative explanation holds instead that Jews turned to Pilsudski as a protector in an increasingly volatile political scene.Kopstein, Jeffrey S., and Jason Wittenberg. "Who voted communist? Reconsidering the social bases of radicalism in interwar Poland." Slavic Review 62.1 (2003): 87-109. Page 106. Estimates of voting patterns by ethnoreligious groups Confession Communists Non-revolutionary left Minority lists Pro-Pilsudski bloc (BBWR) Right-wing Share in 1921 Census Catholic 4% 45% 4% 16% 15% 64% Uniate 12% 1% 71% 30% 3% 12% Orthodox Chr. 44% 4% 21% 21% 1% 10% Jewish 7% 4% 33% 49% 3% 11% Overall share 8% 30% 24% 28% 10% Aftermath The BBWR government bloc won the highest number of seats (125 out of 444 in Sejm (Polish parliament) - 28.12% of the total, and 48 out of 111 in the Senate of Poland - 43.24% of the total); the opposition parties, however, gained a majority of the remaining seats,The Elections to the Polish Parliament (Sejm) 1928 - results https://web.archive.org/web/20071025081330/http://www.elisanet.fi/daglarsson/dokumentit/polval1.htm 2007-10-25 with the left - including Polish Communists - doing much better than the traditional Polish Right. Groth notes that the elections showed a progressively increasing fragmentation of the Polish electorate; a steady and significant increase in the proportion of ethnic minority voting; the rapid rise of the Polish Socialist Party as a major force within the less stable and cohesive Polish Left; and the substantial weakening of the Right by Piłsudski's supporters, as the BBWR, which despite its claims of being above traditional party divisions, attracted its support mostly from the right. Although the opposition to Sanation failed to gain control of the Sejm, it was able to show its strength and prevent Sanation from taking control of the Sejm. This convinced Piłsudski and his supporters that more drastic measures had to be taken in dealing with the opposition. Opposition politicians became increasingly persecuted and threatened.pl Bartłomiej Kozłowski, Aresztowanie przywódców Centrolewu https://web.archive.org/web/20070118191901/http://wiadomosci.polska.pl/kalendarz/kalendarium/article.htm?id=59022 January 18, 2007 , Last accessed on 14 April 2007 Opposition parties formed the Centrolew coalition to oppose the government of Sanation. Their actions led to a vote of no confidence for the Sanation government and dissolution of the parliament. New elections were held in 1930; however, Sanation succeeded in having many Centrolew politicians arrested; and the 1930 elections are not considered free. References Further reading A. J. Groth, Polish Elections 1919-1928, Slavic Review, Vol. 24, No. 4 (Dec., 1965), pp. 653–665 JSTOR Poland Category:Parliamentary elections in Poland Parliamentary Poland