sejm

Sejm Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, commonly called the Sejm, is the lower house of Poland's national legislature, the parliament, together with the Senate. It sits in Warsaw and is presided over by the Marshal of the Sejm. The Sejm comprises 460 deputies elected for four-year terms by proportional representation. Elections use party lists, with a 5 percent threshold for single parties and an 8 percent threshold for coalitions.

Deputies are elected through nationwide and district-based elections; the Sejm exercises legislative authority, including proposing and passing laws, shaping the state budget, and supervising the government. It approves the appointment of the prime minister and the cabinet, and can express no confidence in the government. It shares with the Senate responsibility for international treaties and can override a presidential veto with a three-fifths majority of all deputies. The Sejm also conducts parliamentary inquiry, drafts legislation through committees, and holds debates and votes in public sessions.

Historically, the Sejm has deep roots in the Kingdom of Poland and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, where it was known for the liberum veto, a mechanism that allowed any deputy to halt legislation. In the 20th century, the modern Sejm emerged in the period of the Second Polish Republic and became a central element of Poland's postwar and post-1989 parliamentary systems. The current bicameral arrangement has existed since the 1997 Constitution.