Demokracja bezpośrednia i delegitymizacja elit w programach polskich partii politycznych

Direct Democracy and Elite Delegitimation in Polish Party Manifestos The article investigates which Polish political parties refer to direct democracy and delegitimize “elites” as representatives of “the people” in their electoral manifestos. It examines whether the frequency of such references varies depending on systemic position, parliamentary presence, economic and ideological orientation, and distance from the political centre. The analysis encompassed 42 electoral manifestos published between 2001 and 2023, representing all political parties that exceeded the 3% threshold in parliamentary elections. The choice of this timeframe was driven by two factors: first, since 2001, Law and Justice (PiS) and Civic Platform (PO) have been key actors on the Polish political scene, jointly governing or co-governing the country for eighteen of the past twenty-two years; second, 2023 marked the most recent parliamentary elections in which political parties presented electoral programs available for analysis.