Politics of Białystok


 * This is a sub-article to Białystok

Białystok, like other major cities in Poland, is a City with powiat rights (miasto na prawach powiatu). The Legislative power in the city is vested in the unicameral Białystok City Council (Rada Miasta), which has 28 members. Council members are elected directly every four years, one of whom is the mayor, or President of Białystok (Prezydent). Like most legislative bodies, the City Council divides itself into committees which have the oversight of various functions of the city government. Bills passed by a simple majority are sent to the mayor, who may sign them into law. If the mayor vetoes a bill, the council has 30 days to override the veto by a two-thirds majority vote. The current President of Białystok, elected for his first term in 2006, is Tadeusz Truskolaski.

It is also the seat of government for the Podlaskie Voivodeship. The city is represented by several members of both houses of the Polish Parliament (Sejm and Senat) from the Białystok constituency. Białystok is represented by the Podlaskie and Warmian-Masurian constituency of the European Parliament.

History
The waves of demand for reforming the existing system, which occurred in Bialystok in parallel to other cities in Poland could be seen in the growing posture of Solidanosc organization. Białystok's "Solidarity" tried to gain a foothold in the Municipal National Council (Miejska Rada Narodowa; MRN). During the 18th plenary session of the Municipal National Council, which took place on October 15, 1981. The session was attended by representatives of "Solidarity" in Białystok: Bernard Bujwicki, Edmund Lajdorf, Jerzy Zegarski and Stanisław Guzowicz. They took an active part in the discussion on the election of the president of Białystok. The introduction of martial law interrupted the process of democratization of city councils. The next elections to the Municipal National Council were held on June 30, 1988, based on the new provisions of the Act of June 16, 1988 amending the Act on the system of national councils and local government. The MRN has been entrusted with some of the competences and tasks of the Provincial National Council. The term of office of the MRN lasted two years. It was a period of significant political and social changes. On August 21, 1989, Jerzy Czaban, who established cooperation with the MRN, took over as president.

On May 27, 1990, the first democratic elections to local governments since the end of World War II were held. In Białystok, over 185,000 people were entitled to vote, and approximately 75,000 participated in the elections. people, which constituted 40.54% of those entitled to vote. The Solidarity Civic Electoral Committee won decisively, winning 42 out of 50 seats, the Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland won 4 seats, the Christian Democratic Labor Party and the Coalition Electoral Committee won one seat each, the Bema Street Community Committee won one seat, and the Democratic Party also won one mandate. The best electoral result was achieved by Waldemar Mierzejewski (3,297 votes), the second was Ireneusz Choroszucha (3,272 votes), and Ryszard Tur (2,369 votes) were recommended by OKW "Solidarność". The decisive victory of "Solidarity" could have resulted from the weakness of the other parties and the division of votes into many lists in each constituency, which, under the proportional electoral system, gave the strongest party that enjoyed the support of voters additional mandates.

On June 7, 1990, the first meeting of the new City Council in Białystok, elected on May 27, 1990, took place. It consisted of fifty councillors. Janusz Dolecki was elected as its chairman. City President Jerzy Czaban delivered an introductory speech, informing the audience about the financial problems the City Hall was struggling with. The councillors agreed that the presidential elections would take place on June 18, 1990. Emanuel Trembaczowski submitted a resolution to transfer the building of the Provincial Committee of the Polish United Workers' Party at 3 Próchniaka Street (currently Liniarskiego Street) for the needs of the English language department of the Branch of the University of Warsaw in Białystok. Before the meeting, councillors participated in a solemn Holy Mass celebrated in the Białystok parish by priest Antoni Lićwinka. The city council was also holding a vote to choose the president of the city: 49 councillors participated in the vote and in the first round, Jerzy Czaban received 15 votes and Bronisław Niepsuj 10 votes. 24 councillors voted against both candidates. The candidates did not win an absolute majority of votes, so a second round of elections was ordered. This time, 13 councillors voted for Jerzy Czaban, Bronisław Niepsuj received the same number of votes. 23 councillors voted against both candidates and therefore did not elect the president. Therefore, Janusz Dolecki, the chairman of the City Council, scheduled new elections for June 25, 1989. Jerzy Czaban did not take part in them.

On June 18, 1990, at the next session, attempts were made to elect the president of Białystok. This function was to go to whoever received two thirds of the votes. The vote was secret and 49 councilors participated in it. The competitors included Bronisław Niepsuj - an electronics engineer from the Białystok Television Components Plant Biazet, an activist of the Independent Self-Governing Trade Union "Solidarity", interned during martial law, co-founder of a private company, as well as an activist of the Białystok Land Civic Committee. The elections on June 25, 1989, were held as previously agreed. The Białystok Regional Board of "Solidarity" recommended Andrzej Łupiński for this position, Jan Citka was nominated by the Society of Polish Urban Planners, Wojciech Hołownia was nominated by a group of councilors and Lech Rutkowski was nominated by the Catholic Intelligentsia Club. All candidates represented the Solidarity electoral alliance, but none of them had the recommendation of the Citizens' Committee.

The commission found that none of the candidates obtained an absolute majority, so a second round was held after which Lech Rutkowski received 29 votes and so the City Council appointed him the president of Białystok. The newly elected authorities were preoccupied with the stabilizing the sprawling financial deficit, the introduction of rational management principles, the adaptation of the structures and basis for the functioning of the urban economy to the rules of the free market, making up for the backlog in the development of infrastructure and streamlining the work municipal services.

Governance
The last municipal elections were won by Civic Platform, which holds a majority of the seats in the City Council. The current city mayor, Tadeusz Truskolaski, won the elections as the Civic Platform's candidate, however, he has no official connection with the party. Platform's major opponents, Law and Justice, have a minority of the seats in the City Council and were running the city administration before 2006.

Former Presidents of Białystok include:
 * Lech Rutkowski (1990–1994)
 * Andrzej Lussa (1994–1995)
 * Krzysztof Jurgiel (1995–1998)
 * Ryszard Tur (1998–2006)

The responsibilities of Białystok's president include drafting and implementing resolutions, enacting city bylaws, managing the city budget, employing city administrators, and preparing against floods and natural disasters. The president fulfills his duties with the help of the City Council, city managers and city inspectors.

In 2007 the city authorities established the Youth City Council, which is a self-governing body of adolescents living in Białystok and learning in secondary schools in the city. Youth Council is a non-political consultative body for local government bodies.

The city's official symbols include a coat of arms, a flag and a seal.

Intergovernmental Organizations
Białystok is a member of several organizations:
 * Union of Polish Metropolises (Unia Metropolii Polskich)
 * Euroregion Niemen,
 * Polish Green Lungs Foundation (headquarters)
 * Eurocities.

Honorary Citizens
The following is a list of honorary citizens of the city:
 * Józef Piłsudski – 1921
 * Marian Zyndram-Kościałkowski – 1934
 * Alfons Karny – 1975
 * Lech Wałęsa – 1990
 * Ryszard Kaczorowski – 1990
 * Sławoj Leszek Głódź – 1995
 * John Paul II – 1996
 * Stanisław Szymecki – 1998
 * Henryk Gulbinowicz – 2000
 * Jerzy Maksymiuk – 2000
 * Zdzisław Peszkowski – 2005
 * Wojciech Ziemba – 2006
 * Calherine Stankiewicz von Ernst – 2006
 * Louis-Christophe Zaleski-Zamenhof – 2007
 * Marian Szamatowicz - 2024

Podlaskie Voivodeship Governance
Białystok is the capital of Podlaskie Voivodeship, the Voivodeship Office is located on Mickiewicz Street.

National and EU Representation
Several members of both houses of the Polish Parliament (Sejm and Senat) are elected from the Białystok constituency. Białystok is represented by the Podlaskie and Warmian-Masurian constituency of the European Parliament. The current MEPs are Krzysztof Lisek and Jacek Kurski.

International relations

 * Belarus has a Consulate General in Białystok.
 * Romania has an Honorary Consulate in Białystok.