Poland Is Europe’s Next Test of Unity vs Nationalism

Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg’s daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union.

Pro-European forces in the east are facing mounting challenges to fend off far-right contenders, with Poland the next country to face the test. After defeating a populist himself last weekend, Romania’s newly elected president, Nicusor Dan, spent the day before his inauguration at a rally in Warsaw, lending support to Rafal Trzaskowski in the final stretch of the Donald Tusk ally’s presidential campaign before the June 1 runoff. Trzaskowski, Warsaw’s mayor, only recently pulled ahead in opinion polls after finishing neck-and-neck in the first round with Karol Nawrocki, a historian supported by the former ruling nationalists. And in Romania, Dan’s own struggles are far from over: he will have to narrow what has become the EU’s widest budget deficit and avoid a possible rating downgrade.

— Andrea Palasciano