ABSTRACT
The "urbanization of politics" is a new situation, because traditionally cities were considered a relatively weak element of the Polish public life. After all, this is a country where farmers have their influential parties while there is no such thing as a "municipal party". The importance of the cities grows not only locally, but also globally. Since 2008, more than a half of the world's population lives in urban areas. Big cities are considered to be the "growth locomotives," especially in the field of building the "knowledge-based economy" and attracting the "creative class" – those terms have been used by the global elites as the signposts for the strategies of social and economic growth. The Long-Term National Development Strategy also emphasizes the importance of creating a network of strong cities and implementing the National Urban Policy. But at the same time, it recommends balancing this direction with the "diffusion of developmental processes in other parts of Poland.
