Karol Tadeusz Nawrocki (born 3 March 1983) is a Polish historian and politician who has served as the 7th president of Poland since 2025. He served as the director of the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) from 2021 to 2025, and was the director of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk from 2017 to 2021.
Born in Gdańsk, Nawrocki studied history at the University of Gdańsk, earning a PhD in 2013 with a dissertation on anti-communist activities in the former Polish People's Republic. His academic work centres on themes such as anti-communist resistance in Poland, organised crime, and the history of sports, a subject related to his own background as an active youth athlete, particularly in football and boxing. Nawrocki's early professional career was closely aligned with institutions dedicated to preserving and promoting Poland's historical memory. He joined the Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) in 2009 and gained recognition for reorienting Poland's historical institutions toward a patriotic and anti-communist narrative. In the 2025 Polish presidential election, Nawrocki was chosen as the presidential candidate of the right-wing populist Law and Justice (PiS) party, ran as a nonpartisan "citizens' candidate" and defeated the liberal Rafał Trzaskowski.
As president, Nawrocki has reflected a broader anti-liberal realignment in Poland's political landscape, aligning with populist and right-wing cultural shifts. However, he holds a pro-welfare and protectionist economic stance described by some as left-wing. He pledged to implement new policies that will combat "unfair competition" in the Polish economy. Since his inauguration on 6 August 2025, Nawrocki has been following a confrontational course with the 15 October Coalition and professed opposition to its leader, Donald Tusk. Nawrocki strives to strengthen power around the presidency, supporting constitutional reform into a semi-presidential system. His chancellery is made up of PiS politicians and his IPN affiliates.
Early life and education Karol Nawrocki was born on 3 March 1983 in Gdańsk. His father, Ryszard (1949–2008), was a turner and a member of Solidarity. His mother, Elżbieta, was a bookbinder. He has a younger sister named Nina who is a pastry cook and works in a restaurant in Kraków. He completed primary school and the 4th High School in his home city. After passing his final exams (matura) in 2002, he graduated in 2003 from the Post-Secondary School of Business and Administration in Gdańsk with the title of Personnel Management Specialist. In the same year, he began his university studies at Faculty of History at the University of Gdańsk, which he completed in 2008 with a master's degree.
At the same institute, he obtained a PhD in the humanities based on his dissertation titled: Social Resistance to Communist Rule in the Elbląg Voivodeship, 1976–1989. In 2023, he completed the International MBA in Strategy, Programme and Project Management postgraduate studies at the Gdańsk University of Technology. In his youth, Nawrocki developed a strong interest in physical fitness, spending time working out at the gym, and participating in football and boxing.
Early career
Nawrocki worked at the Institute of National Remembrance in the years 2009–2017, heading its Branch Public Education Office in Gdańsk from 2013 to 2017. He also served as the chairman of the Siedlce District Council in Gdańsk between 2011 and 2017.
In 2017, Nawrocki was appointed the director of the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk, a job he held until 2021. He then returned to the Institute of National Remembrance, becoming its deputy president in June 2021. In July 2021, he took office as the head of the Institute of National Remembrance after being elected by the Sejm and approved by the Senate of Poland. Nawrocki is the author or co-author of several books as well as numerous scientific and popular science papers on anti-communist opposition, organised crime in the Polish People's Republic and the history of sports.
Nawrocki used the pen name "Tadeusz Batyr" to write a book about a gangster living in 1980s Communist Poland. Nawrocki in 2018 went on television as Tadeusz Batyr, wearing a hat and having the television broadcast blur his face, where he said that Nawrocki "inspired me" and highlighted how Nawrocki "was the first person to examine organised crime in communist Poland". Meanwhile, on social media, Nawrocki wrote that "Tadeusz Batyr contacted me for some guidance" and "thanked me for my help with an interesting book, which I recommend".
Presidential campaign
Rise to candidacy Nawrocki was in consideration among speculative candidates such as PiS parliamentary leader Mariusz Błaszczak, MEP Tobiasz Bocheński, poseł Zbigniew Bogucki, former Minister Przemysław Czarnek, MEP Patryk Jaki, former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, poseł Arkadiusz Mularczyk, poseł Kacper Płażyński, former Deputy Minister Tomasz Szatkowski and MEP Dominik Tarczyński, among others. President of the World Anti-Doping Agency, Witold Bańka, was also considered Kaczyński's favoured candidate, but he refused to run in the election.
Because of the centralised nature of the party, the choice for selecting who the party's candidate would be fell primarily to the party chairman, Jarosław Kaczyński, based on social research and the balance of factional power within the party. In an August Radio Maryja interview, Kaczyński stated that the selection of possible candidates was narrowing, and described that the PiS candidate must be a "young, tall, imposing, handsome" male "[with] a family". A United Surveys poll in September 2024 suggested 29% of PiS voters supported Błaszczak, 21% supported Morawiecki, 11% supported Czarnek, 7% supported Nawrocki, 6% supported Bocheński and 6% supported Tarczyński. The possibility of a primary election for the party was rumored, but ultimately, never announced.
By November 2024, media speculation regarding the candidates narrowed down to, most frequently, Bocheński, Czarnek and Nawrocki. According to Newsweek Polska, Nawrocki was supported internally by party activists such as Adam Bielan, Joachim Brudziński, Sławomir Cenckiewicz, , and Mateusz Morawiecki (despite initially desiring to be the candidate himself). Ultimately, at 13.15 on 22 November, Nawrocki was informed that he had been selected as the party's presidential candidate in a meeting with Kaczyński and his opponent, Bocheński.
Speculation began on whether PiS would replace Nawrocki when it was revealed that he had contact with a future criminal during his time as a boxer two decades prior, for which he was attacked by opposing politicians. Polling showed that the vast plurality of people did not expect Nawrocki to be replaced. Nawrocki continued being PiS' presidential candidate going into the first round.
The selection of Nawrocki without consultation with outgoing president Andrzej Duda (the previous PiS candidate) strained relations between him and Nawrocki, although Duda eventually endorsed Nawrocki at his election convention in Łódź on 26 April.
First round of the presidential election Days before the first round, Nawrocki and Romanian presidential candidate George Simion campaigned together in the city of Zabrze, with Nawrocki praising Simion as the "future president of Romania". Donald Tusk criticised cooperation between the two, stating that “Russia rejoices” at such political ties. Critics say this refers to nationalist Călin Georgescu whose victory in the 2024 Romanian presidential election got cancelled citing Russian interference.
On 24 November 2024, at the , during a civic congress organised by Law and Justice, Nawrocki was announced by Andrzej Nowak as an independent candidate supported by the party in the 2025 presidential election. Nawrocki's campaign's platform was described as "patriotic, pro-Christian, pro-NATO, pro-Western, and pro-Donald Trump". On 1 May 2025, Nawrocki met with Donald Trump in the Oval Office. He finished second in the first round held on 18 May 2025 with 29.54% of the vote, and faced Civic Platform candidate Rafał Trzaskowski in a runoff on 1 June.
During the course of the campaign, public criticism emerged over Nawrocki's acquisition of a second apartment from an elderly man in pre-trial detention. As Nawrocki had declared to own just one apartment during a debate, Onet.pl publicised information about him owning a second one. The candidate proceeded to declare that he had acquired the second apartment from the elderly man for pledging lifelong care in exchange; it was revealed the man was placed in a state care facility without Nawrocki's involvement. Amid accusations of exploitation, Nawrocki defended the deal's legality and donated the property to charity, after which some journalists said the man regained access to the property. He also stated he had regularly tried to visit the elderly man, but without success.
Second round of the presidential election On 22 May 2025, Nawrocki met with Sławomir Mentzen, who placed third in the first round of the election. They reportedly discussed possible concessions that could lead to Mentzen endorsing Nawrocki. Mentzen presented a set of eight points for a candidate to sign onto, which were signed by Nawrocki. Former candidates Marek Jakubiak, Marek Woch, Grzegorz Braun and Artur Bartoszewicz endorsed Nawrocki in the runoff. On 1 June 2025, Nawrocki won the runoff election with 50.9% of votes, beating Trzaskowski, who received 49.1% of votes.
Throughout the second round, Nawrocki encountered a set of new incidents involving his personal life, beginning with the revelation that he had previously participated in a 70 vs 70 football hooligans' fight () between fans of Lechia Gdańsk and Lech Poznań. Facing criticism, he said that Prime Minister Tusk likewise participated in football hooliganism in his youth, and called the fights "noble battles". It also came to light that Nawrocki had Chelsea and Lechia Gdańsk tattoos on his torso. There were allegations of him having worked as a bodyguard for sex workers at the five-star Grand Hotel in Sopot in his youth and using a nicotine pouch while on air during a presidential debate, which raised concerns about a possible nicotine addiction.
President of Poland (2025–present)
Nawrocki was inaugurated as president of Poland on 6 August 2025, succeeding Andrzej Duda. On the same day, he participated in the ceremony of accepting the authority of the President of Poland on the Polish Armed Forces.
Domestic policy Relations with the Prime Minister and government Nawrocki's presidency was marked by a confrontational stance against Prime Minister Donald Tusk and his ruling coalition, citing his large and recent social mandate after the recent presidential election. Nawrocki views Tusk as the worst Prime Minister of the Third Polish Republic, but expresses willingness to work with him regardless. Analysts consider the downfall of Tusk's coalition and early parliamentary elections as a goal for Nawrocki, with him also seen as competing with Tusk's government in matters of lawmaking and governance despite the president having a primarily representative role, announcing he is seeking a "new formula of cooperation" between the President and parliament. Nawrocki held his first meeting with Tusk on 14 August, and on 27 August convened the first , oriented on finances, investments and agriculture.
Partisan affiliations