Outgoing Head of State Andrzej Duda tops the presidential election in Poland with 51.2% of the vote in the second round, the results of almost all the polling stations show on Monday.

These results are based on 99.97% of the polling stations and the chief of the electoral commission declared during a press conference that the counting of the last ballots would not change the outcome of the poll.

Andrzej Duda narrowly ahead of the mayor of Warsaw, Rafal Trzaskowski, liberal and europhile candidate of the Civic Platform (PO), the main opposition party, which won 48.8% of the votes in the second round organized on Sunday.

This short victory should allow the government of the Law and Justice Party (PiS) to continue implementing its conservative program. Andrzej Duda notably promised to defend the popular social aid launched by the PiS.

He led a polarizing campaign, notably attacking the rights of LGBT people and rejecting the idea of ​​compensation for Jewish property stolen by the Nazis and under the communist regime. His detractors accuse him of reversing the democratic freedoms acquired three decades ago with the fall of communism. 

With AFP and Reuters

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