Are Public and Political Accountabilities Compatible? Evidence from Polish Municipalities

The article examines the question of compatibility between political and public accountability. The study is based on the research of the mayoral accountability mechanisms in Poland: the annual debate on the municipality, which culminates in the decision of the municipal council to grant or refuse the vote of confidence in the mayor (political accountability); the recall referendum and the general election of the mayor (public accountability). Authors examined debates and confidence votes in 14 non-randomly selected municipalities over the course of the five-year term (N=70), as well as the results of recall referendums and the 2024 mayoral election. The primary research findings are as follows: a) the granting of a vote of confidence to the mayor is not related to the debate on the state of the municipality; b) the sole factor that determines the decision to grant or refuse a vote of confidence is the balance of political power in the council; c) there are cases where the results of political and public accountability do not align: either a mayor who consistently received a vote of confidence was not re-elected, or a mayor who was consistently refused a vote of confidence was re-elected. The authors conclude that the investigated accountability mechanism is of a formal nature and has symbolic consequences, which undermine its utility. They also reflect upon the accountability model that informed the present study, and they propose its deconstruction into its constituent parts.