Poland's president and PM clash over suspended judge in Warsaw power struggle

Protests erupted in Warsaw Friday night after Poland's government suspended the Constitutional Tribunal's chief judge, escalating a power struggle between President Karol Nawrocki and Prime Minister Donald Tusk. The confrontation risks deepening a constitutional crisis ahead of next year's elections. The government removed Bogdan Święczkowski, who faces criminal suspicions, and appointed Anna Korwin-Piotrowska as acting head. Nawrocki, who has vetoed judicial appointments, forced his way past police into the tribunal, shoved Korwin-Piotrowska, and declared she was not a judge. He later called for urgent parliamentary consultations. The crisis stems from a decade-long dispute over judges appointed illegally by the previous PiS government. Nawrocki's camp calls the move a coup, while Tusk's coalition frames it as restoring rule of law. The incident has united right-wing factions, including PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski and ultranationalist figures, against the government.