Election bazaar. What's going on with the prices of pistachios, coriander, cane, lavender and jam?
As with every election since the creation of social media, the word bazaar is trending again on the Polish Internet. What is it about and what do the prices mean?
Since morning, the Polish Internet has been taken over by a mysterious bazaar. What's going on with the trend that dominates especially on the X website (formerly Twitter)?
Election bazaar 2023
Portal X, but also Facebook, is flooded with entries about the mysterious bazaar. Only pistachios, coriander, cane, lavender and jam are sold there. The prices of the products after combining are PLN 100. What is it about?
The bazaar is not a new phenomenon. This is a well-known way of observing election silence in Poland. The names of the products obviously refer to specific electoral committees, and the prices are intended to represent the support given by voters to given lists.
The bazaar is trending on the Internet
The popularity of the phrase bazaar is clearly visible in the Google Trends tool, which shows the cumulative interest in a given phrase over a given period of time. It doesn't show how many people typed a given word into the search engine, but it does give you an idea of how popular it is.
Currently, the keyword bazaar has a popularity level of 100, which is the highest possible level. The increase in the trend is visible on October 15 from 7:00 a.m. This coincides perfectly with the opening of polling stations in Poland.
Election silence in Poland
During elections in Poland, electoral silence is in force from the end of the election campaign until the closing of polling stations on election day.
“The election campaign and referendum campaign end on October 13, 2023 at 24:00. From now on, until the end of voting, it is prohibited to conduct electioneering in any form, in particular convening meetings, organizing marches and demonstrations, giving speeches and disseminating election materials. It is also prohibited to conduct a referendum campaign in any form, in particular convening meetings, organizing marches and demonstrations, giving speeches, distributing leaflets,” reads the statement of the National Electoral Commission.
“The National Electoral Commission calls on people to refrain from any activities that could be considered election agitation and referendum campaigns when it is prohibited,” it added.
Ban on publishing polls
The so-called electoral bazaar is subject to another point of explanation by the National Electoral Commission, namely the ban on publishing polls and research regarding the parliamentary elections.
“During the electoral and referendum silence, it is also prohibited to make public the results of pre-election public opinion surveys (surveys) regarding expected voting behavior and election results, as well as the results of election polls conducted on the day of voting, as well as to make public the results of public opinion surveys (surveys). regarding the expected behavior of voters in the referendum and the results of the referendum as well as surveys conducted on the day of voting,” we read in the explanation of the National Electoral Commission.
Official election results
To follow the first election results, which will be published in the form of exit polls at 9 p.m., as well as further information that will be provided on an ongoing basis, please watch the live coverage we provide for you at Wprost.pl.