Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy (, BS) is a Polish political movement. Operating mainly at a regional level in a decentralised manner, it participates in elections as a national committee joining the individual regional counterparts. The organisation initially started out in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship before expanding to the rest of the country. The party is a heavily decentralised and federated organisation that fields candidates for local governments, often creating and cooperating with local committees and regional organisations. The BS lacks a central leadership and regional structures. The parties rule themselves separately and autonomously. Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy frequently acts as a minor partner of regional governing coalitions, such as in the voivodeships of Lubuskie and Lower Silesia.
Formerly associated with the liberal wing of Christian democracy, the party advocates for proposals such as free public transport, free lunches for children and abolition of the personal income tax (PIT). The party also advocates for creation of a powerful ecological agency based on the American United States Fish and Wildlife Service, which would protect nature and its resources, prevent pollution environment and combat poaching and illegal hunting. The BS believes that the Polish government became too centralised and became unable to address local concerns; to this end, the party believes that the central government needs MPs who are "local government officials, entrepreneurs and community workers who are not concerned with political lists and agenda". The party opposes "nationalisation" of local politics and warns that this would entail further polarisation of society, along with the erosion of local communities. The BS considers local governments a natural link between citizens and government, and foresees a highly decentralised and federalised Poland.
History The party originated from a local committee of Robert Raczyński, who first entered Polish politics in 1990 when he became the President of Lubin. The committee was strongly connected to the Party of Christian Democrats, which represented a liberal faction of Christian democracy. In 1998, Raczyński and his committee worked with Solidarity Electoral Action and entered the voivodeship sejmik of Lower Silesia. In 2008, the committee joined the political movement "Poland XXI" founded by Rafał Dutkiewicz and Kazimierz Michał Ujazdowski, but the movement did not contest the 2009 European Parliament election in Poland. In 2009, the movement changed its name to "Civic Lower Silesia", and in 2014 Raczyński and Dutkiewicz parted ways, with the former founding Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy the same year. The party would slowly grow with transfers and defections from parties such as Civic Platform, Polish People's Party and the Democratic Left Alliance, co-governing with these parties in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship and building a strong club in the Lubuskie Voivodeship. In 2017, the party announced a nationwide movement with the ambition to participate in elections nationwide. Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy was joined by the presidents of Szczecin, Zielona Góra and Bolesławiec, along with many minor local officials.
Regional political movement (2014–2017) Before the 2014 Polish local elections, some activists of the Citizens' Lower Silesia association opposed to the conclusion of an agreement by its president Rafał Dutkiewicz (Mayor of Wrocław) of an agreement with Civic Platform, set up the committee Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy. It won four seats in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship Sejmik, which were given to: Paweł Kukiz, Robert Raczyński, Aldona Wiktorska-Święcka and Patryk Wild. (who thus gained re-election). However, Robert Raczynski was re-elected mayor of Lubin (running from his own committee) and the seat after him went to Tymoteusz Myrda. Councillors from the BS lists remained independent of the assembly. The BS committee fielded two candidates for mayor (Aldona Wiktorska-Święcka in Wrocław and Wiesław Gierus in Jelenia Góra), but they did not enter the second round. In addition to Robert Raczyński, Piotr Roman in Bolesławiec, who was running from his own committee, remained the mayor of the city from among the BS-related candidates. In the Wrocław council, the only seat for BS went to Sebastian Lorenc.
Paweł Kukiz ran in the 2015 Polish presidential election, coming third with 20.8% of the vote. He then initiated a movement to run in the 2015 Polish parliamentary election (it adopted the name Kukiz'15). In mid-July, however, the BS milieu ended its cooperation with Paweł Kukiz and, together with non-partisan local government activists from other regions and the Civic Movement for Single-Mandate Electoral Districts (also previously supporting Paweł Kukiz) set up the JOW Bezpartyjni committee, which registered candidates in only a few electoral districts (among the signatories of the initiative's programme declaration were BS representatives Robert Raczyński, Piotr Roman, Patryk Wild and Tymoteusz Myrda). Senator Jarosław Obremski, who was associated with this group, set up his own committee and successfully ran for re-election (he was supported by, among others, PiS and Polska Razem). He rejoined the Circle of Independent Senators, but in May 2016 switched to the Law and Justice club. As a result of Paweł Kukiz winning his parliamentary seat, his seat in the assembly was taken by Ewa Zdrojewska.
On 7 March 2016, the group Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy was formed in the Lubusz Voivodeship Sejmik. It was formed by councillors from the Lepsze Lubuskie association. (Sławomir Kowal, chairman of the Łukasz Mejza club, and elected from the PSL list). Józef Kruczkowski, who joined the Law and Justice (PiS) club a year later) together with former SLD councillors. (Edward Fedko and Franciszek Wołowicz).
On 31 March 2016 in the Lower Silesian Sejmik, the ODŚ councillors associated with Rafal Dutkiewicz (Janusz Marszałek, Jerzy Michalak, Marek Obrębalski, Ewa Rzewuska and the Sejmik chairman Paweł Wróblewski) left the Civic Platform club. In addition, other councillors from this party - Michał Bobowiec, vice-chairman of the local assembly Julian Golak, Czesław Kręcichwost, Ryszard Lech and voivodship Marshal Cezary Przybylski - left PO. Together with three councillors elected from BS lists (Tymoteusz Myrda, Patryk Wild and Ewa Zdrojewska), as well as another non-aligned councillor Kazimierz Janik (elected from the SLD Lewica Razem list), they established the club Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy, which became the largest club in the assembly and, in coalition with the Polish People's Party, took over power in the voivodeship, ousting PO from it. Tymoteusz Myrda replaced the party's representative as deputy marshal of the voivodeship. Patryk Wild became the head of the club. Aldona Wiktorska-Święcka, elected from their list, did not join the BS club. On 27 June 2016 there was an expansion of the governing coalition, with Civic Platform and the Democratic Left Alliance (which had been in a joint councillors' club with the PSL for some time). Councillors elected from the BS club then left the BS list (dismissed Deputy Marshal Tymoteusz Myrda, Patryk Wild and Ewa Zdrojewska), who became non-aligned and soon established the Non-Partisan Councillors' Club with former PSL councillor Grażyna Cal and Aldona Wiktorska Święcka, who became the club's chairwoman. On 14 July 2016, the former BS club (with 11 members) took the name Dolnośląski Ruch Samorządowy. A Rafal Dutkiewicz-linked association of this name was also subsequently established.
National political movement (2017–2024) On 14 March 2017, the formation of the Local Government Movement "Bezpartyjni" was announced, which was largely a continuation of the JOW Bezpartyjni movement from 2015. The movement, aiming to field a nationwide committee in the 2018 Polish local elections, was co-founded by approximately 60 local government officials from the provinces of Dolnośląskie, Lubuskie, Zachodniopomorskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Podlaskie, Śląskie, Łódzkie and Wielkopolskie. Among others, local government officials who formed committees in the 2014 elections, such as Lower Silesia's Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy, Lepsze Lubuskie and Bezpartyjni Pomorze Zachodnie, which introduced their representatives to the provincial assemblies, came together under the banner of the movement. Among the founders of the 'Bezpartyjni' Local Government Movement were the mayors of Szczecin (Piotr Krzystek), Zielona Góra (Janusz Kubicki), Lubin (Robert Raczyński) and Bolesławiec (Piotr Roman), provincial councillors from the Lower Silesian Sejmiks (from the then Non-Partisan Councillors' Club), Lubuskie (from the LL-linked club Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy) and Zachodniopomorskie (councillor from the BPZ list), the mayor of Scinawa, the chairman of the municipal councils of Szczecin (Jan Stopyra) and Augustów, and Patryk Hałaczkiewicz from JOW.
In the 2018 elections, the BS committee registered lists for sejmiks in all provinces, gaining (as one of 10 committees) nationwide recognition. BS's assembly lists appeared in 62 out of 85 constituencies. A smaller number of lists were fielded by the committee in elections to individual types of councils. BS also fielded several candidates each for mayors, mayors and aldermen.KWW Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy in PKW website. Some candidates associated with the movement also ran under the names of local committees. In the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Bezpartyjni Samorządowcy joined forces with DRS (but without Rafał Dutkiewicz's closest associates, who set up the Z Dutkiewiczem dla Dolnego Śląska committee in the local government elections), with which they formed a joint club of BS councillors in the local government in June the same year, led by Czesław Kręcichwost (numbering 12 at the end of the term and being the largest club in the local government). In Mazovian Voivodeship, the association Mazowiecka Wspólnota Samorządowa (running since 2002 in every local government election - including in 2002 as part of Social Initiative Wspólnota Samorządowa and in 2010 as part of Krajowa Wspólnota Samorządowa) ran under the BS name. On the other hand, in the Opolskie Voivodeship, the BS, as part of an agreement with the local association Przyjazny Samorząd Powiatu Namysłowskiego, registered one list in the assembly elections (thus gaining the rights of a nationwide committee).
In the elections to the Sejmiks, BS obtained 5.28% nationally, in five voivodeships exceeding the electoral threshold and winning seats (15 in total). In the Lower Silesian Voivodship, they obtained 14.98% of the votes, winning six seats. As a result of their decision, PiS came to power in this voivodeship, in coalition with which Cezary Przybylski of BS retained his seat as marshal of the voivodeship. In the West Pomeranian voivodeship, BS received 13.7% of the vote. They did not enter the Voivodeship Assembly, but supported Marshal Olgierd Geblewicz from the Civic Platform, and their representative Maria Ilnicka-Mądry became the chairwoman of the Sejmik. They also managed to establish their own club in Lubuskie, where, with a result of 13.17%, they won four seats (however, the councillor Wioleta Haręźlak, elected from their list, joined the PSL club, becoming the head of the assembly). The BS found themselves in opposition there, as in Mazovia and Greater Poland, where their committee won just over 6% of the vote and its representatives won one seat each. The BS KWW won two mayoral and one mayoral positions, as well as 36 seats in county councils, 53 in borough councils and onen in Warsaw district councils. However, candidates affiliated with the movement also ran under other committee names - among them were city mayors who won re-election: movement leader Robert Raczynski, as well as Piotr Krzystek, Janusz Kubicki and Piotr Roman.