Protests in Poland as president returns to country after Tusk accused of coup against court

Polish President Karol Nawrocki turned back from a flight to Senegal on Friday following the suspension of a far-right ally leading the country's highest court, escalating a feud with Prime Minister Donald Tusk's government over control of the judiciary.Earlier on Friday, the Constitutional Tribunal announced that its longest-serving judge, Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, had suspended tribunal president Bogdan Swieczkowski—an appointee of Tusk's far-right predecessor—and had taken charge of the court.Hundreds of protesters assembled outside the tribunal late on Friday amid a heavy police presence, as right-wing politicians addressed the crowd and accused Tusk's government of launching a coup against the judiciary.Writing on X, Nawrocki stated: "At a moment like this, the President must be in Poland. I am cutting short my flight to Senegal. I am returning."Poland's former Prime Minister and leader of the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party, Jaroslaw Kaczynski (C) speaks as protesters gather outside the headquarters of Poland's Constitutional Court in Warsaw after police blocked access to the building on October 30, 2026 (AFP/Getty)A long-running political dispute over the Constitutional Tribunal has effectively paralysed the institution, with the pro-European government and the nationalist ‌president refusing to recognise appointees put forward by the other ‌side.Tusk, writing on X, said his government was seeking to restore the rule of law, which the European Union had accused his predecessors — the Law and Justice Party — of subverting."This process is difficult, at times ⁠even painful, and requires decisive action. There is no other way," he said.The dispute dates back to 2015, when the nationalist Law and Justice sought to appoint judges to seats already filled by the previous government.Its nominees gained a majority on the Constitutional Tribunal, while critics at home and abroad said the court no longer met the standards of an independent and impartial tribunal established by law.After Tusk's coalition took office in 2023 ‌it pledged to restore the rule of law and reform the court, but ​Law and Justice ally Nawrocki has acted to thwart those efforts since his ‌election as president in 2025.Earlier this year, ⁠Nawrocki refused to swear in three of six judges nominated by parliament, ⁠while Swieczkowski, a former deputy justice minister in the Law and Justice administration, declined to seat judges elected by the ‌current parliamentary majority.Last month, the ​parliament appointed Tusk ally Maciej Berek to ‌the tribunal, which critics said undermined the ​government's stated goal of restoring checks and balances.