Adam Stanisław Szłapka (born December 6, 1984, in Kościan) is a Polish

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

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, and local government official. He has been a member of the

Sejm The Sejm (), officially known as the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (), is the lower house of the bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Poland. The Sejm has been the highest governing body of the Third Polish Republic since the Polish People' ...

(Polish Parliament) for the

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, 9th, and 10th terms (since 2015). He has served as the leader of the Modern party (Nowoczesna) since 2019 and has been the Minister for European Union Affairs in Donald Tusk's third government since 2023.

Early life and education

Szłapka was born on 6 December 1984 in Kościan,

Greater Poland Voivodeship Greater Poland Voivodeship ( ) is a Voivodeships of Poland, voivodeship, or province, in west-central Poland. The province is named after the region called Greater Poland (''Wielkopolska'' ). The modern province includes most of this historic re ...

. He graduated from the Oskar Kolberg High School No. 1 in Kościan. He subsequently graduated in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

and Eastern studies from the Adam Mickiewicz University in

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

Political career

He was an activist of Młode Centrum, a youth organization of the Freedom Union and Democratic Party. Between 2006-2012 he worked as the general secretary of these organizations. Between 2006-2010, he served as town councillor in Kościan representing the Self-Government Democratic Forum (''Samorządowe Forum Demokratyczne''). In 2010, he unsuccessfully ran for office in the local government elections. He was director of the Fundacja: Projekt Polska. In the years 2011-2015, he worked as an expert in the Chancellery of the President

Bronisław Komorowski Bronisław Maria Komorowski (; born 4 June 1952) is a Polish politician and historian who was the fifth president of Poland from 2010 to 2015. Komorowski previously served as Ministry of National Defence (Poland), Minister of National Defence ...

. In 2015, he assumed the post of general secretary of the Modern (''.Nowoczesna'') party. The same year, he stood for election to the

and won a seat from the Kalisz constituency. He was appointed a member of the Foreign Affairs Parliamentary Committee as well as the Secret Service Committee. In the 2019 Polish parliamentary election, he was re-elected as member of parliament receiving 51,951 votes in the Poznań constituency. On 24 November 2019, he replaced Katarzyna Lubnauer as leader of the Modern political party. He has expressed his support for the legalization of

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...

in Poland. Following the 2023 election, on 13 December 2023, he assumed the post of Minister for the European Affairs in Donald Tusk's third cabinet. During a European Parliament debate on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Adam Szłapka, was seen laughing multiple times as Belgian MEP Marc Botenga addressed the issue. Botenga later called him out for his behavior, highlighting the insensitivity of such a reaction in the context of severe human suffering. The incident sparked outrage, with critics condemning it as a sign of disregard for Palestinian lives. Some accused European institutions of complicity in Israel’s actions, pointing to the laughter as a symbol of broader indifference. The episode has added to ongoing debates about Europe’s role in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the moral responsibility of its leaders.

Results in National Elections

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Szlapka, Adam Living people 1984 births Modern (political party) politicians Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań alumni People from Kościan

Early life and education

Political career

Results in National Elections

See also

References