June 10, 2025
Longer description:
The 2020 Polish presidential elections exposed significant challenges to the rule of law and demonstrated how Access to Information can play a pivotal role in uncovering abuses of power.
Changes to the election code were hastily pushed through Parliament without adhering to the constitutional requirement of six months’ notice before amending electoral laws.These changes aimed to enable mail-in voting, but lacked a robust legal foundation, setting the stage for misuse of authority.
One of the most controversial actions was the role of Poczta Polska (Polish Post), which was tasked by an unauthorised directive from the Prime Minister on April 16, 2020, to organise the elections and handle sensitive voter data. Municipalities were pressured to comply with this directive without a proper legal basis, leading to breaches of privacy rights.
Citizens Network Watchdog Poland used Freedom of Information (FOI) requests in spring 2020 to ask 2,477 municipalities if they had shared voter data with Poczta Polska.
The results revealed that some municipalities admitted to transferring data, highlighting regional variations and the pressures on local authorities.
Institutional failures compounded the situation, as bodies such as the State Election Commission and the Data Protection Authority failed to uphold legal standards. Instead of ensuring accountability, these institutions provided vague or supportive interpretations of unlawful actions, further emboldening local officials to transfer voter data under duress.
Citizens Network Watchdog Poland filed 470 criminal complaints (some still pending) against mayors for illegal data transfers. Many cases were dismissed or halted after a 2022 amnesty law retroactively absolved officials, raising concerns about the rule of law. This case illustrates the critical role of FOI in holding authorities accountable, exposing institutional failures, and challenging unlawful actions.