Poland A and B

Last updated June 01, 2024

Poland A and B (Polish : Polska A i B) refers to the historical, political, and cultural distinction between the western and the eastern part of the country, with Poland "A", west of the Vistula, being much more developed and having faster growth than Poland "B", east of the river. The General Secretary of the Polish Chamber of Commerce [ pl ] Marek Kłoczko said in his 2007 interview that the divisions are more spread out and forming three separate categories: Poland "A" are the metropolitan cities; Poland "B" is the rest of the country; and Poland "C" are the plains and the landscape parks east of the Vistula (Poland "Z", according to Kłoczko), which require a different treatment.^[1]

Reportedly, Poland's well-off cities are Warsaw, Gdańsk, Wrocław, and Poznań, and the ones struggling with less investment are in the east: Rzeszów, Lublin, Olsztyn and Białystok.^[1] However, current unemployment statistics for Poland in general fail to show that distinction and even indicate an opposite trend in recent years, with the northwest reporting rates of unemployment higher than east-central Poland. In 2014, among the highest in the nation were the Kuyavian-Pomeranian and West Pomeranian Voivodeships (compare the historic railroad map and the administrative map, right, with the 2014 unemployment map, from business portal eGospodarka.pl);^[2] while among the lowest in the country was the east-central Masovian Voivodeship.^[3]

Railroads of Poland in 1953, following World War II. The denser network of railways in the west is a result of traditional coal mining as well as western Poland's history as part of heavily industrialised Germany. PKP1952-53.jpg — Railroads of Poland in 1953, following World War II. The denser network of railways in the west is a result of traditional coal mining as well as western Poland's history as part of heavily industrialised Germany.

Distinction

The distinction is unofficial and in some ways oversimplified, but it is widely acknowledged and discussed in Poland.^[5]

Historically, the source of Poland "A" and "B" can be traced to the period of the partitions of Poland, and different policies of the partitioners, which resulted in a much larger industrial development of the Prussian partition, compared to the Austrian and Russian partitions (including the so-called eastern Kresy) where the imperial exploitation policies were rampant.^[1]

In this divide, it has to be noted that Poland's borders were changing over the centuries. They moved westward after 1945, to reflect the Poland of the Piasts rather than the Poland of Jagiellonians. For instance, Warsaw was initially a settlement in eastern Poland. When it became a capital city in the 16th century, and historically in the developed as a central part of the Kingdom of Poland (the Crown), later western-central part of the Commonwealth. Now is situated in the central-eastern part of it. The slower growing western provinces are often former German regions that were already densely populated and well-developed in terms of infrastructure and industry before 1945, now populated mostly by Poles from the former Eastern Polish regions. For example, the above-mentioned Olsztyn was part of Prussia since the times of the Teutonic Order.

Politics

The difference between Poland's "A" and "B" is particularly evident in the voting patterns of the two regions. During the 1990s, Poland "A" tended to favour the Democratic Left Alliance (Sojusz Lewicy Demokratycznej, or SLD), as a secular, socially liberal de facto successor in post-1989 politics to the former ruling party of the PRL. Poland "B" on the other hand voted either PSL or the Solidarity, both representing Christian-democratic values.^[6] The 2001 election was the only one when Poland A and B were not seen on the maps, as SLD won both in the east and the west of the country. Since circa 2005, Poland saw a realignment in its political system. Residents of Poland "A" have supported the liberal conservative party Civic Platform (PO). Residents of Poland "B" (excluding Warsaw), on the other hand, tend to support the national conservative Law and Justice party (PiS).

Gallery

Administrative map of Poland with results of the 2007 elections to the Senate of Poland; orange: Civic Platform, navy blue: Law and Justice
2011 Polish parliamentary election, PiS (blue), KO (orange)
2018 Polish local elections to regional assemblies (voivodeships) PiS (blue), KO (orange)
Law and Justice's main support (dark blue) is concentrated in the south-east of the country (former Russian Partition and Austrian Partition), results of the 2015 Polish parliamentary election
Law and Justice's main support (dark blue). PiS has seen increased support in the 2019 Polish parliamentary election
2020 Polish presidential election 1st round, PiS (blue), KO (orange)
2020 Polish presidential election second round, PiS (blue), KO (orange)
2023 Polish parliamentary election - Senate results, PiS (blue), Opposition (orange)
2024 Polish local elections to regional assemblies (constitutencies) PiS (blue), KO (orange)

In popular culture

On 26 January 2016, the album Karabin by Maria Peszek was released. It includes the song "Polska A, B, C i D". A day later, the song was released as a single and it peaked at number one on the Polish Radio Three Chart.^[7]^[8]

Poland "B" is mentioned in the 2020 Polish horror film Nobody Sleeps in the Woods Tonight .

Related Research Articles

The Civic Platform is a centre to centre-right liberal conservative political party in Poland. Since 2021, it has been led by Donald Tusk, who previously led it from 2003 to 2014 and was President of the European Council from 2014 to 2019.

The Polish People's Party is an agrarian political party in Poland. It is currently led by Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz.

From 1989 through 1991, Poland engaged in a democratic transition which put an end to the Polish People's Republic and led to the foundation of a democratic government, known as the Third Polish Republic, following the First and Second Polish Republic. After ten years of democratic consolidation, Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union on 1 May 2004.

The Social Democracy of Poland is a social-democratic political party in Poland.

Poland has a multi-party political system. On the national level, Poland elects the head of state – the president – and a legislature. There are also various local elections, referendums and elections to the European Parliament.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2001 Polish parliamentary election</span>

Parliamentary elections were held in Poland on 23 September 2001. All 460 members of the Sejm and 100 senators of the Senate were elected. The election concluded with an overwhelming victory for the centre-left Democratic Left Alliance – Labor Union, the electoral coalition between the Democratic Left Alliance (SLD) and the Labour Union (UP), which captured 41% of the vote in the crucial lower house Sejm. The 2001 election is recognized as marking the emergence of both Civic Platform (PO) and Law and Justice (PiS) as players in Polish politics, while also witnessing the outright collapse of the Solidarity Electoral Action (AWS) and its former coalition partner, the Freedom Union (UW).

National Party of Retirees and Pensioners is a minor left-wing political party in Poland. The main goal of KPEiR is protecting retired seniors, pensioners and trust-busting. The current leader is former Sejm Member Tomasz Mamiński.

The 2009 European Parliament election in Poland was the election of the delegation from Poland to the European Parliament in 2009 which took place on 7 June 2009. On 13 February the Sejm accepted a proposal for an amendment to the electoral court act to allow voting for the European Parliament election of 2009 to take place over 2 days i.e. the 6 and 7 June 2009. However, on 5 March, the proposal was referred to the Constitutional Tribunal of the Republic of Poland by the Polish President, Lech Kaczyński. The Polish electorate elected 50 MEPs. In the 27 EU Member States, at total of 736 MEPs were elected from 4–7 June 2009.

Sovereign Poland, also known as United Poland, until 2023, is a Catholic-nationalist political party in Poland led by Zbigniew Ziobro. It was founded in 2012, as the Catholic-nationalist split from the Law and Justice, with whom they later formed the United Right alliance in 2014.

Poverty in Poland has been relatively stable in the past decades, affecting about 6.5% of the society. In the last decade there has been a lowering trend, as in general Polish society is becoming wealthier and the economy is enjoying one of the highest growth rates in Europe. There have been noticeable increases in poverty around the turns of the decades, offset by decreases in poverty in the years following those periods.

The Polish Communist Party, or the Communist Party of Poland, is an anti-revisionist Marxist–Leninist communist party in Poland founded in 2002 claiming to be the historical and ideological heir of the Communist Party of Poland, Polish Workers' Party and the Polish United Workers' Party.

Parliamentary elections were held in Poland on 13 October 2019. All 460 members of the Sejm and 100 senators of the Senate were elected. The ruling right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) won re-election to a second term retaining its majority in the Sejm. However, it lost its majority in the Senate to the opposition. With 43.6% of the popular vote, Law and Justice received the highest vote share by any party since Poland returned to democracy in 1989. The turnout was the highest for a parliamentary election since the first free elections after the fall of communism in 1989. For the first time after 1989, the ruling party controlled one house, while the opposition controlled the other.

The United Right was a parliamentary group formed by Jarosław Gowin and Zbigniew Ziobro with their respective parties, Poland Together and United Poland. After their cooperation at 2015 Polish parliamentary election with the Law and Justice party, 'United Right' became a media label for the ruling right-wing political alliance of Law and Justice with its aforementioned partners in Poland.

The Civic Coalition is a catch-all political alliance currently ruling in Poland. The alliance was formed around Civic Platform in opposition to the then-ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party.

Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy is a Polish political movement. Operating mainly at a regional level in a decentralised manner, it participates in elections as a national committee joining the individual regional counterparts. The organisation initially started out in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship before expanding to the rest of the country. The party is a heavily decentralised and federated organisation that fields candidates for local governments, often creating and cooperating with local committees and regional organisations. The BS lacks a central leadership and regional structures. The parties rule themselves separately and autonomously. Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy frequently acts as a minor partner of regional governing coalitions, such as in the voivodeships of Lubuskie and Lower Silesia.

The Polish Coalition is a political alliance in Poland. It is led by the Polish People's Party.

Dariusz Joński is a Polish politician and local government official who has been serving as a member of the Sejm since 2019.

The New Left is a social-democratic political party in Poland. It is positioned on the centre-left on the political spectrum. Its leaders are Włodzimierz Czarzasty and Robert Biedroń.

Jolanta Maria Banach is a Polish politician, teacher, member of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Sejm terms, 2001-2003 Secretary of State in the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy of Poland, and 2003-2004 Secretary of State in the Ministry of Economy, Labor and Social Policy of Poland.

Wacław Klukowski is a Polish politician, government official, and farmer who served as a member of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland during the fourth convocation. He was also a councilor in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship.

References

1 2 3 Iwona Borkowska, Polska Polsce nierówna, Raport Polska.pl 2008-06-04. Internet Archive. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
↑ "Stopa bezrobocia 2014". Map of unemployment by region 2014. eGospodarka.pl. Archived from the original on 8 April 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
↑ "Unemployment in Poland in February 2014". Raporty i prognozy. eGospodarka.pl. At the end of February 2014 the highest unemployment rate in Poland was found in voivodeships: Warmian-Masurian (22.3%), Kuyavian-Pomeranian (18.8%), West Pomeranian (18.5%), Świętokrzyskie (17.1%), Podkarpackie (16.9%) and Lubusz (16.3%). The lowest unemployment rates in the country were found in: Wielkopolskie (10.0%), Masovian (11.4%), Silesian (11.7%) and Lesser Poland (12.1%).
↑ Wiesław Samecki, Ekonomia 3: Centralny Okręg Przemysłowy 1936–1939, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego, 1998, ISBN 83-229-1634-5. Introduction.
↑ Pueyo, Tomas (29 February 2024). "Why Are There 2 Polands?". Medium. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
↑ Kowalczyk, Krzysztof (15 March 2014). "Typologia polskich partii politycznych według kryterium programowego" [The typology of political parties in Poland made on the basis of their political platform](PDF). Środkowoeuropejskie Studia Polityczne (in Polish) (1): 73–99. doi:10.14746/ssp.2014.1.6. hdl: 10593/22710 . Retrieved 19 August 2021.
↑ ""Polska A B C i D" czyli Maria Peszek wraca i zniechęca do nienawiści" (in Polish). 27 January 2016.
↑ "Archiwum LP3, notowanie 1781, z dn. 18.03.2016 | Lista Przebojów Programu Trzeciego".