Polish President Turns Back After Court Chief Suspended

On October 30, 2026, Polish police cordoned off the Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw after its website announced a one-month suspension of President Bogdan Święczkowski and Deputy Bartłomiej Sochański. President Karol Nawrocki cut short a flight to Senegal, saying the president must be in Poland and he was returning. Święczkowski was blocked by police from entering. Police said they were carrying out statutory activities and cited public order. The tribunal's social media called the move a coup attempt; Nawrocki allies said the same. Judge Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, elected by the parliamentary majority in March 2026, is tied to the order. Nawrocki refused her oath; she was sworn in inside Parliament on April 9 without him. Suspensions reportedly cite Article 130 of ordinary-courts law; Constitution Articles 194 and 195 cover Tribunal leadership and judicial independence. The dispute continues a standoff over six majority-elected judges—Nawrocki rejected three oaths—and Tusk's effort since December 2023 to reverse PiS-era judicial changes. The EU ended Article 7 proceedings in 2024. Who lawfully leads the Tribunal remains unresolved.