WARSAW: Conservative Karol Nawrocki has won Poland’s weekend presidential runoff election, according to the final vote count.
Nawrocki won 50.89% of votes in a tight race against liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, who won 49.11%.
The close race had the country on edge since a first round two weeks earlier and through the night into Monday, revealing deep divisions in the country along the eastern flank of NATO and the European Union.
An early exit poll released Sunday evening suggested Trzaskowski was headed to victory before updated polling began to reverse the picture hours later.
The outcome indicates that Poland can be expected to take a more nationalist path under its new leader, who was backed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
The 42-year-old Nawrocki has been endorsed by the right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party, which governed Poland from 2015 to 2023.
The party is closely allied with outgoing President Andrzej Duda -- who has publicly backed Nawrocki -- and is a long-standing rival of the ruling Civic Coalition.
Nawrocki campaigned under the slogan "Poland first, Poles first".
While he has pledged to continue Poland's support for neighbouring Ukraine against Russia's invasion, he has denounced the benefits given to war refugees.
He said in a campaign video in April that "social benefits will be above all for Poles" and that "in queues for doctors and clinics, Polish citizens must have priority".
In May, he claimed Ukraine "has not shown gratitude for what Poles have done" and accused President Volodymyr Zelensky of "insolence". He opposes Ukraine's bid to join NATO.