Sejm Speaker Czarzasty rejects presidential constitutional reform plans

Opposition to constitutional changes

Sejm Speaker Włodzimierz Czarzasty stated that parliament will reject any constitutional reform initiative sponsored by President Karol Nawrocki. Speaking on Polskie Radio on 24 September 2026, Czarzasty dismissed proposals for a new basic law, citing geopolitical turmoil and the ongoing war across Poland's borders. Nawrocki established the Council for the New Constitution in May to prepare structural reform proposals for the state. Czarzasty declared that the political environment is unsuitable for fundamental legal overhauls, citing international instability and describing Donald Trump as a disruptive figure. He further argued that political figures who previously refused to seat legitimate judges have disqualified themselves from rewriting the country's founding legal document.

If you decided that you want to be king, and we know this because you announced a constitutional change, by the way, there will be no constitutional change. In times when we have a war across the border, when we have destabilization, when President Trump is a leader, but unfortunately a leader of chaos, no one in Poland will change the constitution.

Clash over presidential powers

Czarzasty criticized Nawrocki for attempting to expand presidential powers beyond constitutional limits. He argued that the Presidential Palace is attempting to combine the roles of prime minister, president, and parliamentary speaker into a single office. Under the constitutional framework, the prime minister directs government policy, parliament handles lawmaking, and the president acts as head of state. Czarzasty pledged that the coalition will not permit the president to govern by rejecting government bills and replacing them with his own legislative initiatives.

There is such an idea from the Presidential Palace that the president will be prime minister, president, and marshal of the Sejm. I absolutely appeal to the president: abdicate from the position of king and return to the position of president. The president represents, the prime minister governs, the marshal of the Sejm is responsible for legislation. That is simply how it is.

Stance on the Constitutional Tribunal

The conflict between the Sejm and the presidency also extends to the status of the Constitutional Tribunal. Czarzasty described the tribunal as politicized and subservient to Law and Justice as well as the Presidential Palace. He noted that appointing a former head of the Internal Security Agency to lead the tribunal compromised the credibility of the judicial body. The speaker reiterated that Nawrocki and former president Andrzej Duda broke constitutional norms by refusing to administer oaths to judges elected by parliament. He questioned the legal trajectory of the tribunal, asking sarcastically if its current members would eventually attempt to declare their terms lifelong to avoid replacement.

Legislative friction and chancellery detention

Legislative relations between the parliamentary majority and the presidency remain strained following multiple vetoed bills. Czarzasty rejected recommendations from Deputy Speaker Szymon Hołownia to negotiate draft laws with Nawrocki early in the legislative process. He pointed out that Nawrocki still issued 15 vetoes during Hołownia's term as Sejm speaker despite their constructive dialogue. The speaker also addressed the detention on 23 September 2026 of the director of the Events Bureau at the Presidential Chancellery. The arrest took place during a judicial investigation into financial irregularities at the Polish National Foundation. Czarzasty stated that public officials will face judicial accountability and dismissed political pushback from the presidential camp regarding the probe.