Polskie partie eurosceptyczne w wyborach do Parlamentu Europejskiego w 2009 roku

The article undertakes to analyze the participation of Euro-skeptical factions in the election to the European Parliament (EP) in Poland in the year 2009: Samoobrona (SelfDefense), Libertas, Prawica Rzeczypospolitej (The Right Wing of the Republic of Poland), Naprzód Polsko (Poland Forward), Unia Polityki Realnej (Union of Real Politics). These parties obtained very poor results and did not manage to win a single seat in the EP. Their defeat was the more evident if one compares the current results with those obtained in 2004, when the Self-Defense and League of Polish Families had fairly good results. The present state of things has been the consequence of a few factors, the most significant of which are the following: – the stable high level of social support for Poland’s membership in the EU, with simultaneous lack of criticism of the membership; – disintegration of the majority of Euro-skeptical factions which have been active as the Opposition outside Parliament; – financial weakness which manifested itself in a poor election campaign; – the lack of support on the part of Radio Maryja and the other media controlled by Father Tadeusz Rydzyk that concentrated on intensive backing up of Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (Law and Justice); – competition from the Law and Justice which made use of Euro-skeptics’ rhetoric in the election campaign.