Ex-EU boss returns as Polish PM

Donald Tusk has regained the position nearly a decade after his departure

Veteran pro-EU politician Donald Tusk on Monday became Poland’s new prime minister, after the country’s parliament ousted now-former PM Mateusz Morawiecki in a decisive no-confidence vote.

Tusk secured a comfortable victory, with 248 MPs voting for him and 201 against. The politician needed to secure at least 225 votes to become the new PM.

The election of a premier came shortly after the Polish parliament ousted Morawiecki from his post. The house overwhelmingly backed the no-confidence motion against the now-former PM, with some 266 MPs voting in favor of it.

The downfall of Morawiecki comes after his right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party suffered losses in Poland's general election in mid-October. It was won by Tusk’s broad coalition of pro-EU parties, which now holds a majority in the parliament.

The PiS has conceded defeat, with party president Jaroslaw Kaczynski hailing the country’s “democracy,” although he blamed the downfall of the government on a broad smear campaign against the party. After Tusk got elected, however, Kaczynski himself became unruly and stormed the parliament’s podium, in the process accusing the new PM of being a “German agent.”

Tusk served as Poland’s Prime Minister between 2007 and 2014. Shortly after ending his tenure, he became the president of the European Council, leading the bloc’s executive body until late 2019.