On July 30, 2026, in Warsaw, the collection of signatures for a referendum on the dismissal of President Rafał Trzaskowski and the Warsaw Council officially begins. The initiative is led by Capital Reference Operation (SOR).
What is it?
Organizers – defined as a bottom-up, non-partisan movement of residents, want to lead to a referendum of appeal. According to them, Warsaw has been facing:
- party seat instead of competence,
- administrative surplus (more than 9 thousand official posts, costs approx. PLN 2 billion per year),
- investment problems and delays in key projects,
- poor supervision of municipal companies and institutions,
- lack of a long-term vision for urban development.
As an example, they indicate, among others, the Southern Hospital affair and other irregularities, which, according to the organizers, the President was to know and not react enough.
Numbers and schedule
In order for a referendum to be held at all, it is necessary to collect approx. 132 000 valid signatures residents of Warsaw (10% of those entitled to vote). For the collection 60 days – until September 27, 2026.
Next:
- 30 days to verify signatures,
- a possible referendum (October 2026),
- 50 days of campaign,
- planned date of vote: December 13, 2026.
A referendum alone does not mean recalling the authorities. For the result to be binding, the turnout must be about 450–467,000 people (three-fifth attendance from the last local election). It's a very high threshold.
Who are the organizers?
The main face of the initiative is Maciej Wilk – President of the Polish Development Foundation, formerly known for the "Yes to the CPK" movement. The SOR stresses that it is not a project of any political party, although the opposition (PiS, Confederacy) with interest observes the course of action. No large party gave her official support at the start.
Is it real?
The experience from Krakow (where the president was successfully dismissed) shows that it is possible to collect signatures, but in Warsaw the challenge is much greater – both due to the scale of the city and the very high threshold of attendance. Organizers must expect to reject some signatures during verification, so in practice they need a clear stock.
The signature collection is about to take off. It depends on the mobilisation of residents and volunteers whether in December 2026 Warsawers will have the opportunity to vote on the cancellation of the current city authorities.
