Końskie has always been the seat of the foundry industry. Broadly understood. We can see this manifestations today on many streets of Polish cities. And not only in central Poland, but also in more distant regions of our country.
When we look at the sewage wells, for example, we can see that they were often produced by plants located in Końskie. Most likely, through Koneckie Zakłady Foundry, which have been operating in the city since the end of the 19th century.
Touristing is not a rich region. Among the attractions we will find, among others The Museum of the Old Polish Basin and numerous tourist routes, including primarily bicycle routes. They run through the nearby forests, which are not lacking in the commune.
See also: Here is the threshold of wealth in Poland. You don't have to earn millions to cross it [KWOTY]
Economy in Końskie
According to the Central Statistical Office, there are just over 24 km of bicycle roads in the commune, but they do not cover tourist routes in the forests.
Other data show a bit why Końskie is a symbol of poviat Poland. A lot of indicators are significantly different from those that we observe, for example, in large cities. Let's take unemployment here, for example.
State statistics show that the unemployment rate (understood as the share of the number of unemployed in the population of working age) It amounts to 5.8 percent in Końskie For comparison: in Warsaw it is only 1.6 percent. This is the data at the end of 2023, because there is no newer one in the GUS bases.
The commune's budget revenues are average 5.8 thousand PLN per capita. It is twice as much in Warsaw. The case is similar with local government expenditure per capita.
The gap can be seen in the income level. Median monthly gross salary in Końskie 6,000 73 PLN. This means that half of the inhabitants earn less than this amount per month. This is after a conversion of less than 4.5 thousand PLN on hand.
For the whole country, the median is over 6.8 thousand. zloty. This means that in Końskie you earn much less than on average throughout the country. Compared to Warsaw, the difference is even greater, because in the capital the median exceeds 9.1 thousand. PLN gross per month.
It is in Końskie that the problems that the inhabitants of the poviat Poland face are better visible. From the perspective of Warsaw, they may not be clearly visible enough.
Age structure of Końskie.
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Central
Końskie is also quite advanced age local government. People over 60, especially women in the range of 65-74 years, are a relatively largest group here. Group 45-49 is the most represented among men.
Why is the election won in Końskie?
A city of 17.5 thousand residents (the whole commune has the same one) for years has been associated with political battles for votes of voters from small and medium -sized cities. According to Grzegorz Schetyna, the former head of the PO, “the election is won in Końskie, not in Wilanów.” In this way, the city gained symbolic significance as a place where the fate of the poviat Poland electorate decides.
A political scientist from the Jan Kochanowski University in Kielce, dr Agnieszka Zaremba, emphasized in an interview with PAP that Small cities, such as Końskie, are the key goal of politicians fighting for uncertain voters.
– In such places, candidates try to reach people who usually do not participate in the elections – noted Dr. Zaremba. The political weight of Końskie was initiated years ago, and today's reality only strengthens their importance.
Końskie also enrolled in political memory during the election campaign in 2020. Then TVP organized a debate there, in which only President Andrzej Duda took part. Rafał Trzaskowski, organizing his own meeting in Leszno, avoided confrontation. As Schetyna later assessed, this decision could affect his result in the second round. The politician added, however, that “these were different times”, and the TVP debate did not guarantee objectivity, being organized by “government, not public television.”
In the background of political games, the mayor of Końskie, Krzysztof Obratański, sees his benefits. “The eyes of the whole country turned to our city are a great promotion and increase in recognition,” he said before this year's debate.
Political interest in Końsk translates not only into image benefits. In 2020, the president Andrzej Duda signed a law here as part of the Plus program, promising to restore rail connections with the city. The connections were indeed resumed a year later, and the photo of the president working at the table on the platform became an online vir.
Końskie politically favors the right. In the second round of 2020 elections, Andrzej Duda won 62 percent of votes here, and in the last parliamentary elections PiS reached the result of 44.9 percent, ahead of the KO, which obtained 22.5 percent of the votes.
