Editing Prime Minister of Poland (section)

===Third Republic===
[[File:Tadeusz Mazowiecki - Europeana - Viewing Exhibition.jpg|thumb|[[Tadeusz Mazowiecki]], former prime minister of Poland browsing an exhibition at the [[Europeana]] 1989 roadshow in Warsaw.]]
Following the partially free [[1989 Polish parliamentary election|1989 parliamentary election]], the [[Solidarity Citizens' Committee|Solidarity]] government of [[Tadeusz Mazowiecki]] faced the monumental task of formally institutionalising the office in order to define its relatively vague legal powers. As the communist state was quickly dismantled, this impasse remained due to the series of unstable governments falling in quick succession in the first years of the Third Republic.<ref name="Zubek pp. 96-97">[[#Zubek|Zubek]] pp. 96–97</ref> Matters were not helped by the vagueness of the presidency, whose recreation during the Round Table Talks left a poorly defined yet potentially powerful office.<ref>[[#Linz and Stepan|Linz and Stepan]] p. 280</ref> After [[Lech Wałęsa]]'s direct [[1990 Polish presidential election|1990 election]] to the presidency, a tug of war between the offices of the premier and presidency regarding the powers of the two offices began, with Wałęsa arguing for increased presidential powers by drafting a new constitution, with the right to appoint and dismiss the prime minister and members of the cabinet.<ref name="Linz281">[[#Linz and Stepan|Linz and Stepan]], p. 281</ref> Although Wałęsa later recanted his attempts to create a [[presidential system]], the president continued to advocate for a [[Semi-presidential republic|semi-presidential]] model similar to that of the [[French Fifth Republic]].<ref name="Linz281" /> The passage of the [[Small Constitution of 1992|Small Constitution]] in 1992, which dispensed with the communist 1952 version, clarified several presidential prerogatives over the prime minister, including the president's right to be consulted on the ministers of [[Ministry of National Defence (Poland)|Defence]], [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Poland)|Foreign Affairs]], and [[Ministry of Interior (Poland)|Interior]].<ref name=Schwartz59-60>[[#Schwartz|Schwartz]] pp. 59–60</ref> Although Wałęsa enjoyed a conflict free relationship with Prime Minister [[Hanna Suchocka]], power rifts remained after the Small Constitution's passage, particularly with the Sejm, which Wałęsa repeatedly attempted to dissolve, influence its appointments, and shift its constitutional reform agenda towards the presidency's favour.<ref name="Schwartz59-60" />

However, by the [[1993 Polish parliamentary election|1993 parliamentary election]], which brought in a relatively stable left-of-centre coalition government between the [[Democratic Left Alliance (Poland)|Democratic Left Alliance]] (SLD) and the [[Polish People's Party]] (PSL), as well as Wałęsa's defeat in the [[1995 Polish presidential election|1995 presidential election]] by [[Social Democracy of the Republic of Poland|SdRP]] challenger [[Aleksander Kwaśniewski]], an impetus for greater constitutional reform began to proceed.<ref name="Zubek pp. 96-97" /> Between 1996 and 1997, a series of reform laws passed through parliament, strengthening and centralising the prime minister's prerogatives.<ref name="Zubek p. 97">[[#Zubek|Zubek]] p. 97</ref> These reforms would form the basis of the current [[Constitution of Poland|1997 Constitution]]. Significant changes included the ability for the prime minister to call a vote of confidence, the premier's exclusive right to allocate and [[cabinet reshuffle|reshuffle]] ministers, and also for the prime minister to solely determine the areas of competence for ministries.<ref>[[#Zubek|Zubek]] pp. 97, 100</ref> Many of the prime minister's new powers were gained at the expense of the presidency, which lost the rights to consult ministerial appointments, reject the prime minister's cabinet selection or reshuffles, chair the cabinet, and to veto the budget, although veto powers in other areas remained.<ref>[[#Zubek|Zubek]] p. 87. According to Zubek, Wałęsa's attempts in the early 1990s to swing constitutional reform towards a presidential system, taking advantage of legal loopholes over cabinet appointments and dissolving parliament, led lawmakers to greatly strengthen the role of the legislature by the 1997 Constitution.</ref> Additionally, the previous communist-era Office of the Council of Ministers (''Urząd Rady Ministrów'') was reformed into the [[Chancellery of the Prime Minister of Poland|Chancellery]] in 1997 to act as the premier's executive central office and support staff, assisting the facilitation and coordination of policy among members of the cabinet.<ref>[[#Zubek|Zubek]] pp. 107–110</ref> The reforms between 1996 and 1997, codified under the constitution, made the prime minister the centre of legal authority within the government.<ref name="Zubek p. 97" />