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The paper presents the election results of the Democratic Party in the midterm elections 2010. The consequences of these elections encompassed the loss of seats in both houses of Congress as well as the much more painful outcome of the Republican Party winning a majority in the House of Representatives. President Obama assumed complete responsibility for this defeat, and the next two years for him will mean cooperation with the GOP, which will be difficult given the financial crisis. Midterm elections traditionally undermine the party of the President in office – power drains from those who wield it. There always are people who are disappointed with the current policy of the administration, however, in 2010 we can talk about a political earthquake. Apart from the 'midterm elections effect', the success of the Republican Party partly resulted from the difficult economic situation and the reform of the health care system. A significant feature of this campaign involved the Tea Party movement, which won a considerable support owing to its critical attitude to President Obama's domestic policy. ; The paper presents the election results of the Democratic Party in the midterm elections 2010. The consequences of these elections encompassed the loss of seats in both houses of Congress as well as the much more painful outcome of the Republican Party winning a majority in the House of Representatives. President Obama assumed complete responsibility for this defeat, and the next two years for him will mean cooperation with the GOP, which will be difficult given the financial crisis. Midterm elections traditionally undermine the party of the President in office – power drains from those who wield it. There always are people who are disappointed with the current policy of the administration, however, in 2010 we can talk about a political earthquake. Apart from the 'midterm elections effect', the success of the Republican Party partly resulted from the difficult economic situation and the reform of the health care system. A significant feature of this campaign involved the Tea Party movement, which won a considerable support owing to its critical attitude to President Obama's domestic policy.

The paper presents the election results of the Democratic Party in the midterm elections 2010. The consequences of these elections encompassed the loss of seats in both houses of Congress as well as the much more painful outcome of the Republican Party winning a majority in the House of Representatives. President Obama assumed complete responsibility for this defeat, and the next two years for him will mean cooperation with the GOP, which will be difficult given the financial crisis. Midterm elections traditionally undermine the party of the President in office – power drains from those who wield it. There always are people who are disappointed with the current policy of the administration, however, in 2010 we can talk about a political earthquake. Apart from the 'midterm elections effect', the success of the Republican Party partly resulted from the difficult economic situation and the reform of the health care system. A significant feature of this campaign involved the Tea Party movement, which won a considerable support owing to its critical attitude to President Obama's domestic policy.

This study examines Russia's policies towards and within the Councilof the Baltic Sea States in the aftermath of the Ukrainian and other internationalcrises. More specifically, this paper analyses Russia's interest in andexpectations from the CBSS, as well as Moscow's institutional behaviour in theCouncil. The CBSS is viewed by Russia as both a centrepiece and cornerstoneof the regional governance system. Moscow also sees the CBSS as an importanttool for overcoming the politico-diplomatic isolation where Russia founditself with the start of the Ukrainian crisis. With the help of the CBSS, it retainsits ability to influence socioeconomic, political, environmental, and humanitariandevelopments in the Baltic Sea region. Russia supported the Council'sthree long-term priority areas: a regional identity, a sustainable and prosperousregion, and a safe and secure region. Russia favoured further the Council'sinstitutionalization and strengthening of its role in the regional governancesystem. Despite the fact that Russia's relations with other CBSS member-statesremain tense and that Moscow does not always manage to use the Councilto promote its interests in the region, the CBSS is still seen by Russia as animportant platform for regional cooperation.

The aim of this short paper is to show that the relations between Ukraine and Russia are extremely complex as they are built on a shared history, religion, language, and culture and they should not, therefore, be gauged by Western standards. Evaluating the current situation from a broader perspective, the fact that Ukraine plays a significant role in Russia's foreign policy needs to be emphasized. Ukraine is considered the key post-Soviet state, a significant "near abroad" country, whose position, potential, and geopolitical location are vital for the balance of power in both Eastern Europe and Europe in general. The research project aims at a synthetic examination of the current Russia-Ukraine war from the point of view of Ukraine striving for full independence, memory, and identity. Will the war of the brotherly nations wreck Russia's long-term policy towards Ukraine? Will the conflict ruin Russia's plans of post-Soviet space reintegration, whose pivot is set on Ukraine? Will the war stimulate Ukraine to deal with the issue of its identity, post-Soviet legacy, and collective memory?

An election campaign is an inseparable element of every election process. It is time preceding all democratic elections which in its being is exceptional and unique. This article is aimed at presenting to the comprehensive systematization of election campaigns. Ten criteria allowing to understand the complexity of the discussed political phenomenon were adopted. They are these criteria: the object, the time, the spatial reach, the legitimacy, the sequence of voting, the way of competition, the aim, the way of reaching the electorate, technological trends, methods of proceedings. For example the authoress assigned to the first criterion such electoral campaigns as: european, presidential, parliamentary, self-government. The systematization of election campaigns described in the article seems as of today to use up the complexity of the description of that political phenomenon. Maybe in the future implementing new criteria of the typology will be necessary. It will happen probably as a result of the rapid development of an contemporary election campaigns, and new criteria will concern rather strategic and tactical matters, than they will result from prescriptive regulations.

The article explores Turkey's ambitions to assume a proactive role as a mediator in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. Positioned as a middle power striving to enhance its global standing, Turkey has dedicated itself to striking a delicate balance between Russia and Ukraine in its foreign policy. This is exemplified by Ankara's engagement in an ambiguous cooperative rivalry with Russia while strengthening its partnership with Ukraine, including military cooperation in the Black Sea Region. Given these circumstances, Turkey sees itself as naturally inclined to act as a facilitator in brokering a ceasefire and bringing about peace between the two conflicting parties. Some successes have already been achieved, with the grain initiative being a primary example thereof.

The article deals with the problem of Russia's aspirations to revise the geopolitical system created in Soviet times using Crimea as an example. It shows the activities of both local political circles and the central authorities of the Russian SFSR, and later the Russian Federation, aimed at revising the existing borders and integrating the Crimean peninsula into Russia. The article covers the years from the collapse of the Soviet Union to the 1997 agreement between Russia and Ukraine.

Both Russian authorities and Russian society have a sense of harm associated with the position of Russia in the world. They do not agree with the dominant role of the West. To a large extent it is associated with a sense of Russian pride. The consequence of this situation is the growing confrontation between the Russian Federation and the West. Currently, the theatre of confrontation is i.a. the conflict in the east of Ukraine and the war in Syria. The intensification of military tension is also observed, the confirmation of which is the violation of the airspace of NATO members. The author of this article undertook research effort associated with the determination of the fields of confrontation between Russia and the West.

The specific use of the "energy weapon" in the hybrid war is being analyzed. The author highlights the historical retrospective use of the "energy weapon" in general and against Ukraine in particular. Now the energy component of hybrid war is the second in importance and power after the information component. The main political task of the gas conflict between Moscow and Kyiv, which was inspired by the Kremlin, was to demonstrate the inability of Ukraine as a transit partner and to damage the reputation of our country as a reliable transit, geoeconomic and geopolitical partner of the European Union. During the gas conflict Russia tried to position itself as an influential geopolitical player to preserve Ukraine in its sphere of political influence. By blackmail and promises to keep "special conditions" in the price formation Kremlin sought to protect its geopolitical interests in Ukraine. Upon solving the gas conflict, Moscow has tried to block the implementation of the provisions of the Charter on Strategic Partnership between Ukraine and the United States on modernization. The "gas weapon" was used for the first time during the winter of 2005–2006. The first gas war demonstrated the vulnerability of Ukraine and European consumers, and demonstrated how effective and promising may be the further use of energy weapons.Gas weapons are used on several different fronts. First, Russia claims Ukraine is not trustworthy as a transit country for gas as it will act firstly to protect its own interests. In other words, Gazprom offers Europe a choice – or they, European consumers and voters, suffer or Ukraine does. Second, Russian specialists are ready at the first opportunity to accuse Ukraine of unsanctioned gas use, thereby justifying a reduction in supply to Europe. Third, Gazprom intends to prevent establishing reserve gas supplies in Ukraine. Fourth, Russia views Ukrainian gas debts as a source of financial income particularly necessary today.The purpose of the use of gas weapons is the implementation of a direct impact on the economy of the state, in this case – causing economic losses of Ukraine, with long lasting effects.

The specific use of the "energy weapon" in the hybrid war is being analyzed. The author highlights the historical retrospective use of the "energy weapon" in general and against Ukraine in particular. Now the energy component of hybrid war is the second in importance and power after the information component. The main political task of the gas conflict between Moscow and Kyiv, which was inspired by the Kremlin, was to demonstrate the inability of Ukraine as a transit partner and to damage the reputation of our country as a reliable transit, geoeconomic and geopolitical partner of the European Union. During the gas conflict Russia tried to position itself as an influential geopolitical player to preserve Ukraine in its sphere of political influence. By blackmail and promises to keep "special conditions" in the price formation Kremlin sought to protect its geopolitical interests in Ukraine. Upon solving the gas conflict, Moscow has tried to block the implementation of the provisions of the Charter on Strategic Partnership between Ukraine and the United States on modernization. The "gas weapon" was used for the first time during the winter of 2005–2006. The first gas war demonstrated the vulnerability of Ukraine and European consumers, and demonstrated how effective and promising may be the further use of energy weapons.Gas weapons are used on several different fronts. First, Russia claims Ukraine is not trustworthy as a transit country for gas as it will act firstly to protect its own interests. In other words, Gazprom offers Europe a choice – or they, European consumers and voters, suffer or Ukraine does. Second, Russian specialists are ready at the first opportunity to accuse Ukraine of unsanctioned gas use, thereby justifying a reduction in supply to Europe. Third, Gazprom intends to prevent establishing reserve gas supplies in Ukraine. Fourth, Russia views Ukrainian gas debts as a source of financial income particularly necessary today.The purpose of the use of gas weapons is the implementation of a direct impact on the economy of the state, in this case – causing economic losses of Ukraine, with long lasting effects.

The article discusses the relationship between the occurrence of international conflicts and the desire of states to implement their own geopolitical interests. The key factor in the emergence of conflicts is the concept of an inter-civilization clash by Samuel Huntington, where the role of states in the formation of the international system is the trigger for decision-making. The author states that in modern conditions Russia defends its interests, which should not be perceived by other actors of international relations as a threat, but as competition.

Artykuł ten przedstawia dorobek intensywnie rozwijającej się od początku XXI wieku, w badaniach nad wyborami regionalnymi, perspektywy rządzenia wielopoziomowego. Perspektywa ta, odwołuje się do koncepcji wyborów regionalnych jako wyborów drugorzędnych, jednak modyfikuje ją, wskazując na przeobrażenia zachodzące we współczesnej polityce regionalnej w Europie (wzmocnienie władz regionalnych [regional government], zwiększenie liczby stanowisk politycznych, które obsadzane są w drodze wyborów, większe kompetencje wyborców, wzrost liczby partii regionalnych i decentralizacja struktur partyjnych). Prace badawcze prowadzone w ramach tej perspektywy zmierzają do udokumentowania i wyjaśnienia przypadków niepotwierdzających modelu drugorzędności oraz wyodrębnienia krajów, w których jest ona nadal obserwowalna i ustalenia czynników wzmacniających ją lub osłabiających. W warstwie teoretycznej, przy opisie wyborów regionalnych, koncepcja wyborów drugorzędnych wzbogacana i uzupełniana jest o dwie inne koncepcje, odwołujące się do zakresu sprawstwa władz regionalnych i podziałów terytorialnych. Artykuł zakończy zaprezentowanie badań nad wyborami w Europie Środkowowschodniej. ; The article discusses the findings of the multilevel government school (MLG) which has been advancing since the beginning of the 21st century, studying regional elections. The concept defining regional elections as second-order elections has been recognized as critical, although it is reformulated by the MLG school to respond to changes in modern regional politics in Europe. Important recent political developments include the entrenchment of regional governments, the increase in the number of electoral appointments, expanded competencies of voters, the rise of non-state-wide parties and the empowerment of sub-national organizational levels of parties. Current MLG research focuses on identifying and explaining the cases where second-order election predictions do not appear to hold for regional elections, identifying states where it is still the case and, finally, identifying factors that increase or decrease this effect. An interesting theoretical development regarding regional elections as second-order elections is that this concept is supplemented and enriched by the theories of regional authority and territorial cleavages. The final part of the article reviews studies on regional elections and the applicability of the second-order concept to Central and Eastern European countries.

Można postawić tezę, że wybory z 4 czerwca 1989 r. miały dla przyszłości Polski znaczenie zasadnicze. Porozumienie zawarte przy Okrągłym Stole umożliwiało opozycji demokratycznej jedynie obecność w parlamencie i tym samym kontrolę aparatu władzy. Miało też przerzucić na opozycję część odpowiedzialności za państwo. Wynik wyborów spowodował, że obóz komunistyczny musiał władzę oddać w ręce dotychczasowej opozycji. W artykule przedstawiono wysiłki przedstawicieli Komitetu Obywatelskiego w Państwowej Komisji Wyborczej zmierzające do zabezpieczenia rzetelności wyborów. Jest to jednocześnie obraz powstawania w Polsce prawa wyborczego charakteryzującego demokratyczne państwo oraz tworzenia się kultury prawnej społeczeństwa. ; It might be argued that the election of 4 June 1989 was of essential importance for the future of Poland. The agreement reached at the 'Round Table' merely provided for the presence of democratic opposition in Parliament, allowing it to exercise some control of the apparatus of power. The intention of that concession was to pass onto the opposition a share of responsibility for the state. However, as a result of the election that followed, the ruling communists had to actually hand down power to their opponents. This paper describes the efforts that the Citizens' Committee in the State Election Commission made to protect the integrity of the election. It also describes the process of electoral law formation in Poland, as well as the development of the legal culture of society.

The principle of equal electoral opportunities is implemented, inter alia, by allocating free airtime to political entities. In Poland, like in many other countries, the authorized committees have the right to use the public media's airtime free of charge during election campaigns. The present article's objective is to show the Polish solutions in this domain compared with the regulations in other countries and to present the research results and their analysis concerning Poles' attitude to free election broadcasts – including their assessment of the broadcasts as a source of knowledge about candidates and parties taking part in the election campaign. The studies were carried out based on the survey questionnaire, which was compiled using the five-level Likert scale. The sample was selected by the stratifiedquota method (N = 971). The conclusions resulting from the survey suggest the need to retain the regulation that enables political entities in Poland to use free election broadcasts during election campaigns. At the same time, they point out that it is necessary to seek more advantageous forms and content to put airtime to appropriate use during the campaign period.