Polish president Nawrocki pushes his way into top court amid rule-of-law tussle

On Saturday morning, Polish President Karol Nawrocki physically entered the Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw, intensifying the ongoing "rule-of-law tussle" between him and Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Footage showed Nawrocki pushing through a crowd at the court's entrance to confront key judges. Journalist account of the incident conflicted with that of the judges, with some accusing the president of physically blocking Anna Korwin-Piotrowska, whose contested nomination as acting president sparked the crisis.

Nawrocki reportedly told Korwin-Piotrowska and other recently elected judges under Prime Minister Tusk's parliamentary majority that they were not qualified to serve as judges. The president demanded that police leave the court grounds and convened emergency consultations with parliamentary parties, citing a "threat to Poland's internal security."

Despite being blocked, judges suspended tribunal president Bogdan Święczkowski and his deputy, accusing them of being loyalists to the former nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) government. Nawrocki accused the government of "forcibly seizing a constitutional institution," while police continued to maintain a presence outside the tribunal, where PiS supporters had established a protest camp for weeks.