Polacy za granicą i Polonia we współczesnym świecie a wybory prezydenckie w latach 2000–2015

Abstrakt

Due to the complicated history of Poland, many Poles live outside the country. This state was influenced by many processes, such as: economic emigrations, refugees, the effects of deportations carried out by the invaders during World War II and the shift of national borders after it. Polish citizens retain voting rights without any restrictions related to living outside the country and the duration of their stay abroad. These rights are enforced by the country government by creating voting wards in the countries where the Polish diaspora lives.

In order to answer the question about its real influence on shaping the Polish government, the size of the Polish diaspora should be determined and also how much the Poles abroad are involved in domestic affairs. One of the criteria for analyzing their involvement is their participation in the Polish presidential election (the analysis is based on data from the presidential elections taking place from 2000 to 2015).