Sejm elects UMCS constitutionalist Sławomir Patyra to the Constitutional Tribunal, replacing Zielonacki

The vote

On Thursday 11 June, the Sejm elected Dr hab. Sławomir Patyra as a judge of Poland's Constitutional Tribunal. The vote was 235 in favour, 184 against, with 5 abstentions, clearing the required absolute majority of 213 in a chamber where 424 deputies took part. Patyra's candidacy was put forward jointly by the ruling coalition parties: Civic Coalition (KO), the Left, Polish People's Party–Third Way (PSL-TD), and Centrum.

The defeated candidate

The rival nominee, Professor Artur Kotowski of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński University in Warsaw, was rejected for the seventh time. His candidacy, submitted by Law and Justice (PiS) deputies, drew 173 votes in favour, 245 against, and 6 abstentions. The Sejm's Justice and Human Rights Committee had already recommended Patyra on Tuesday by 18 votes to 15, while giving Kotowski a negative opinion.

Who is Sławomir Patyra?

Patyra (born 1970) has been affiliated with Maria Curie-Skłodowska University (UMCS) in Lublin since 1994 and has headed its Department of Constitutional Law in the Faculty of Law and Administration since 2019. He also lectures at Kazimierz Pułaski University in Radom (since 2013) and is a co-author of several academic textbooks. A member of the Polish Society of Constitutional Law, he qualified as a legal adviser in 2013 and belongs to the Lublin District Chamber of Legal Advisers, collaborating with the National Council of Legal Advisers. In 2021, the Sejm rejected his candidacy for the post of Ombudsman, which had been backed by Civic Coalition and the Polish Coalition. Between 2024 and 2025 he sat on the supervisory board of the state energy company PGE.

Reaction from the government

Justice Minister and Prosecutor General Waldemar Żurek told reporters in the Sejm corridor that the vote was part of a plan to restore institutions to citizens. When asked whether President Karol Nawrocki might decline to invite Patyra to the Presidential Palace for the oath, Żurek said the judge would decide independently. Prime Minister Donald Tusk walked past during the interview and patted Żurek on the back, a gesture the minister interpreted as satisfaction with the result.

Patyra's first statement

Speaking to TVP Info immediately after the vote, Patyra said he felt obliged to justify the trust placed in him.

“I also want to convince those who were sceptical about my candidacy that I will be a substantive Constitutional Tribunal judge. It is very important that the Tribunal ceases to be seen as part of a political dispute.”

He declined to speculate on whether the president would summon him for the oath, noting that the president has time to do so.

What happens next

Under the law on the status of Constitutional Tribunal judges, the newly elected judge must take an oath before the President of the Republic. Zielonacki's term formally ends on 28 June 2026. The Sejm elects Tribunal judges individually, by absolute majority, for nine-year terms.