Karol NawrockiPrezydent RP · bezpartyjny2026-10-31 · Oświadczenie prezydenta odczytane przez Szefernakera, relacja rp.pl (wpis z godz. 06:49)

Statement

„Tonight the constitutional order of the Republic of Poland was breached and a constitutional organ of the state was taken over by force.”

Claim checked: On the night of 30-31 October the Constitutional Tribunal was taken over "by force" and the constitutional order was breached.

Verdict: Partly true

What we found

The sequence of events is confirmed in its main points. According to Notes from Poland and Parkiet, seven judges elected this year by the Sejm entered the Tribunal escorted by the State Protection Service, judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska announced she was running the court and ordered a break in duties for President Bogdan Święczkowski and Vice-President Bartłomiej Sochański, and police did not let the president in. There is, however, no ruling that this was an unlawful "coup": the phrases "breach of the constitutional order" and "seizure by force" are legal assessments that are disputed. The Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights called the grounds for the suspension doubtful and warned of a dangerous precedent. Marcin Matczak wrote that the legal basis "is nonexistent for a million reasons" (Notes from Poland). The other side points out that the President refused to swear in five of the eight judges the Sejm elected this year, and the government presents its steps as restoring the rule of law. The sources we read do not report the use of force against the Tribunal beyond the detention of three people after a fence was cut. No court has assessed these events yet.

Method note

We propose "Partly true": the description of events broadly matches the reports, but the legal classification is disputed and unresolved. The verdict concerns the statement, not the intent of its author.

Sources

• Where it was said
• Notes from Poland: chaos w Trybunale Konstytucyjnym (30.10.2026)
• Notes from Poland: prezydent w fizycznej konfrontacji z sędziami (31.10.2026)
• Parkiet: kryzys wokół TK, opis przebiegu i stanu sporu (31.10.2026)
• Wirtualna Polska: relacja na żywo, stanowisko HFPC (31.10.2026)

We rate statements, not people. Photo: The White House, domena publiczna, Wikimedia Commons.