ANTI-EU football hooligan “pimp” Karol Nawrocki has won Poland’s presidential election.
In the final tally released by the electoral commission, Nawrocki, a 42-year-old right-wing historian with a history of football hooliganism, narrowly secured victory with 50.89% of the vote.
Until six months prior, Nawrocki was relatively obscure, but during the election lead-up, he shared videos of himself engaging in activities such as shooting and boxing, crafting a rugged persona to attract voters.
Contrasting his liberal rival Rafal Trzaskowski, who emphasized his ties to Europe, Nawrocki visited the White House to meet Donald Trump and earned the endorsement of the US President.
Unlike other eurosceptics in central Europe like Hungary’s Viktor Orban, Nawrocki supports giving military aid to help Ukraine in the bloody war with Russia.
But he also revealed prior to his win that he will oppose membership in Western alliances for Ukraine.
This view aligns with the falling support among Poles for Ukrainians, with the country having hosted more than a million refugees from across the border.
His backers in the Law and Justice (PiS) party had supported fast-tracking membership in the EU and NATO for Kyiv while in power until late 2023.
Nawrocki’s critics said he was fuelling unease over Ukrainian refugees at a time when the far-right is highlighting migration, the cost of living and security.
He cited his campaign slogan, Poland First.
“Let’s help others, but let’s take care of our own citizens first,” he said on social media in April.
Nawrocki’s past has been a topic of intense public debate following a series of negative media coverage.
There were questions over his acquisition of a flat from a pensioner -and even an admission that he took part in orchestrated brawls.
Nawrocki, an amateur boxer, told a debate when confronted over reports he had been involved in mass organised fights between football hooligans: “All my sports activities were based on the strength of my heart, the strength of my muscles, my fists.
“It was a fair competition, regardless of the form.”
His Law and Justice party backers have accused the government of orchestrating the controversies with the help of Poland’s special services and liberal media.
Nawrocki portrayed the election as a referendum on the government, which he described as a metropolitan elite out of touch with their concerns.
“I am simply one of you,” he told voters in the eastern town of Biala Podlaska while on the campaign trail.
