Poland’s Populist Govt Brings Hope To Struggling Rural Areas

KOBYLIN-BORZYMY, Poland (AP) — Life has always been hard for Witold Pogorzelski, a farmer in eastern Poland. Fuel shortages in the communist era prevented him from transporting his produce. In the capitalist era, the nearby sugar factory that provided an income to him and his wife was forced to close. But now, as the 64-year-old prepares for retirement, he feels like there’s finally a bit of hope. He and his wife Barbara are among those who voted for the populist Law and Justice party, which won power in 2015 promising to help those left behind by the inequalities of Poland’s free-market era, to protect traditional Catholic values and to rebuild national pride. The party won 38 percent of the vote nationally, which gave it a majority in parliament.