Polish Prime Minister Tusk rules out bid for presidency in 2025
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk has emphatically ruled out his seeking election as president in 2025, despite rumours that he will take a second run at the position.
"I say it this clearly: No, I will not run in the presidential election," Tusk told the country's TVP Info on Thursday evening.
According to Tusk, who until 2019 was president of the European Council before returning as Poland's prime minister late last year, he had so much to do as head of government that a few months or years would not be enough.
In 2005, Tusk ran for president for Poland's liberal-conservative Civic Coalition (PO) but lost to Lech Kaczyński of the national-conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party.
The 67-year-old Gdansk native already served as prime minister from 2007-14 and has been periodically rumoured to be mulling a presidential re-run.
Poland will elect a new head of state in summer 2025, although the exact date has not yet been set. Incumbent Andrzej Duda, who comes from PiS, will not be allowed to run again after two terms in office.
In his remarks to TVP Info, Tusk said he would be pleased to see fellow PO member and Warsaw mayor Rafał Trzaskowski pick up the gauntlet in next year's race.
Trzaskowski was narrowly defeated by Duda in the last election.
