In brief

• Residents of Częstochowa voted on Sunday in a referendum on recalling mayor Krzysztof Matyjaszczyk and the city council.
• Recall requires turnout of at least 29.47 percent for the mayor and 30.81 percent for the council.
• Matyjaszczyk was detained in February on corruption charges and suspended from office; results are expected overnight.

Referendum opens across 135 polling stations

Voting in Częstochowa ran from 7 a.m. and closed at 9 p.m. on Sunday, 25 October (Koniec referendum w Częstochowie. Głosowano nad odwołaniem władz miasta – Rzeczpospolita) (Ważą się losy kolejnego prezydenta. Mieszkańcy Częstochowy ruszyli do urn – PolsatNews.pl). The city had 135 polling districts: 126 permanent stations and nine special ones in hospitals, social care homes, a hospice and a pre-trial detention centre (Referendum w Częstochowie zakończone. Czy udało się odwołać prezydenta Matyjaszczyka? – RMF24) (Referendum w kolejnym mieście. Rozstrzygają się losy prezydenta Matyjaszczyka – Dziennik.pl). Voters received two ballots. The smaller A5 sheet asked whether they supported recalling Krzysztof Adam Matyjaszczyk as city president before the end of his term. The larger A4 sheet asked the same about the city council (Referendum w Częstochowie. W niedzielę głosujący dostaną dwie karty. Kiedy poznamy wyniki? – czestochowa.wyborcza.pl).

Turnout thresholds

For the referendum to be valid, turnout has to reach a minimum level. For the mayor's recall, at least 46,625 residents need to vote, which corresponds to 29.47 percent of eligible voters. For the council recall the minimum is 48,754 votes, or 30.81 percent (Referendum w Częstochowie. Trwa liczenie głosów w sprawie odwołania prezydenta – Onet). Both figures are based on the turnout in the 2024 second round, and the lower population means the percentages are slightly higher than the raw numbers would suggest.

Background of the case

Matyjaszczyk was detained by the Central Anticorruption Bureau (CBA) in February on corruption charges and has since been suspended from his duties (Częstochowa. Referendum w sprawie odwołania prezydenta trwa - Wydarzenia w INTERIA.PL – wydarzenia.interia.pl). The initiative behind the current vote is the second attempt to recall him during this term; a previous effort in 2025 failed to gather enough signatures.

Results expected overnight

The Krajowe Biuro Wyborcze delegation in Częstochowa expects results during the night, and no later than the early morning hours. A few complaints were reported about poorly marked polling stations, with signs in some places put up only after voting had begun.