Szymon Hołownia

Szymon Hołownia (2019)

Szymon Franciszek Hołownia (born September 3, 1976 in Białystok ) is a Polish journalist , writer , television presenter and politician who ran for the office of president in Poland's 2020 presidential election as an independent candidate .

Career

youth

Hołownia graduated from the secondary school “Fabryczna 10” in Białystok ( Społeczne Liceum Ogólnokształcące “Fabryczna 10” ). In 1994 he starred in the short film “Człowiek z cienia” ( Man from the Shadows ) by the “Projektor” film club in Białystok. After graduating from high school, he began studying psychology at the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Warsaw , but did not graduate. He was then twice in the novitiate of the Dominican Order .

Journalistic career

1997 to 2000 Hołownia was editor of the cultural department of the daily newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza . From 2001 to 2004 he worked as a columnist and editor in the social department of the Polish news magazine Newsweek Polska . Between April and July 2005 he was deputy editor-in-chief of the weekly newspaper Ozon and from September 2005 to 2006 editor of the supplement magazine Plus Minus of the daily newspaper Rzeczpospolita . He wrote for the scientific magazine Kultura Popularna , for the music magazine Machina and for the newspapers Przewodnik Katolicki , Tygodnik Powszechny and Więź . From 2006 to 2012 he worked again for Newsweek Polska . Between September 2012 and April 2013 he also worked as a columnist for the weekly newspaper Wprost and again for Tygodnik Powszechny from 2015 .

During this time, Hołownia also worked as a radio host. He moderated programs on Radio Białystok and Radio Vox FM and also worked with Radio PiN . In 2006 he was the presenter of the TV show Po prostu pytam ( I just ask ) on TVP1 . From 2007 to 2012 he was program director of the channel Religia.tv , where he played the ethical talk show Między sklepami ( Between the Shops ) from the Warsaw shopping center Złote Tarasy (2007-2010) or programs such as Bóg w wielkim mieście ( God in the Big City , 2010 ) and from 2009 Ludzie na walizkach ( people on suitcases ) moderated. He also directed the press review at Dzień dobry TVN . From 2008 to 2019 he was co-TV presenter with Marcin Prokop of the Polish edition of Got Talent ( Mam talent ) on TVN and in 2015 the program Mamy cię! ( We have you! ).

In 2019 he ended his journalistic and media work in connection with the announcement of his candidacy for the 2020 presidential elections.

Social and political engagement

Hołownia was one of the founders of the Pomoc Maltańska Foundation ( Maltese Aid ) branch in Białystok. In April 2013 he founded the Kasisi Foundation , which runs a large orphanage in Zambia in which more than 200 children live permanently. In 2014 he founded the Dobra Fabryka Foundation ( Good Factory ), the residents u. a. from Bangladesh , Mauritania , Rwanda , Burkina Faso and Senegal . Both foundations help almost 40,000 people annually.

On December 8, 2019, Hołownia officially announced his candidacy for the 2020 presidential elections at the Gdański Teatr Szekspirowski ( Gdańsk Shakespeare Theater ). On February 7, 2020, he published his election program with five focal points: national security, climate protection, solidarity, self-government and civil society. Jacek Cichocki was appointed head of his electoral staff . His staff also include u. a. Michał Kobosko, Łukasz Krasoń, Mirosław Różański and Przemysław Staroń. Hołownia was supported by Janina Ochojska and Wadim Tyszkiewicz (independent senator, long-time former mayor of Nowa Sól ) , among others .

In the election on June 28, 2020, he came third with 13.8 percent.

He is an ambassador for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals .

Political opinions

Hołownia advocates strengthening the following principles: parliamentary democracy , popular sovereignty , independence and territorial sovereignty , rule of law , civil society , separation of powers and pluralism . He points out the important role of local self-government . He regards the constitution as an overriding and indisputable legal asset. He emphasizes the importance of the political change after 1989. He is critical of the government of Mateusz Morawiecki ; u. a. he believes the government's changes to the judiciary are unconstitutional.

family

His wife Urszula Brzezińska-Hołownia is an officer in the Polish Air Force and pilot of the MiG-29 fighter plane , honored with the Commander -in-Chief of the Polish Armed Forces award for successful emergency landing with the engines switched off. They have a daughter Maria together and live in Warsaw.