In April, Poles will elect councillors at various levels, as well as commune heads (wójt) and mayors.

Poles have been consistently satisfied with the functioning of the local government for decades. At the beginning of this year, two-thirds (67%) evaluate the work of local government officials in their commune/town positively, and approximately a quarter (24%) assess it negatively. The ratings of local authorities are currently slightly worse than in the corresponding period preceding the local government elections in 2018.

Evaluation of the activities of the commune/municipal authorities.

In subsequent measurements, we have observed a relatively constant differentiation of assessments depending on the size of the town where the respondents live. In general, we have noted better opinions among rural residents, and worse among respondents from the largest cities (population of 500,000 or more).

Most Poles evaluate both the work of local authorities (70%) and the activities of their commune/municipal council (66%) as positive.

Generally speaking, how do you evaluate the work of the:

Most respondents (59%) believe that local authorities in their city or commune spend the money at their disposal appropriately. Nearly a quarter (23%) have the opposite opinion. Currently, the way in which money from local budgets is spent is met with greater approval than in previous decades, especially in 1993 and 2002, when financial management by local government aroused considerable controversy. It seems that the improvement in the assessment of the way local authorities spend money should be associated with Poland's accession to the European Union and the use of EU funds by local governments for, among others, infrastructure projects.

In your opinion, do the local commune/city authorities properly spend the money at their disposal?

The conviction that financial resources are properly used by local governments is not differentiated by the size of the locality, with the exception of the largest cities, where two-fifths of respondents express doubts about it.

Respondents attribute the greatest influence on the situation in their town to local self-governments (60%). The grassroots initiatives of the residents themselves are also of great importance in their own perception (48%). The next places in the hierarchy of perceived influence are: the county (powiat) self-government (46%), voivodeship self-government (43%) and the European Union (43%), although the latter - in the opinion of over one-fifth of respondents - has little to do with it. Respondents attribute less impact on the development of their town to voivodes (37%) and central authorities (39%).

To what extent does the development of your town/village and its immediate region depend on: