Independent candidate Łukasz Gibała wins Kraków mayoral runoff

Łukasz Gibała, an independent candidate, was elected mayor of Kraków on 11 October, defeating Monika Piątkowska in a runoff vote. Gibała secured 62.12% of the vote compared to Piątkowska's 37.88%, with a turnout of 44.27%. Piątkowska was a senator backed by Prime Minister Donald Tusk's Civic Coalition, and her defeat represents a significant political setback for the governing party in Poland's second-largest city.

The election followed the removal of former Civic Coalition mayor Aleksander Miszalski in a May referendum, which was driven by public anger over the city's growing debt and a proposed low-emissions zone. Gibała, who serves as a city councillor and founded the residents' association Kraków dla Mieszkańców, campaigned on a platform of breaking with the political establishment. He had previously run for mayor on three occasions, narrowly losing to Miszalski in 2024.

Following his victory, Gibała declared that "the people of Kraków have just regained their city." However, he acknowledged that he would need to cooperate with the Civic Coalition and the Left party, which together control 23 of the 43 seats on the city council. Gibała warned that Kraków's budget situation was "disastrous" and cautioned that the next two years would present significant challenges for the city.