The Citizens' Movement for Democratic Action (, ROAD) was a political faction in Poland coalescing the liberal wing of Solidarity movement after its entry into the Sejm in the 1989 parliamentary election. Its competition with the conservative wing of Solidarity represented by the Centre Agreement culminated in ROAD's defeat in the 1990 presidential election and ultimate unification with the Forum of the Democratic Right into the Democratic Union.
On 24 August 1989, Tadeusz Mazowiecki became Poland's first non-communist Prime Minister of Poland since Felicjan Sà Âawoj Skà Âadkowski in the interwar era. Mazowiecki's coronation as Prime Minister came about as the result of an agreement between two of the political factions within Solidarnoà Âà- the future Centre Agreement (PC) led by Lech and Jarosà Âaw Kaczyà Âski, and the trade union's leader, Lech Waà ÂÃÂsa, who sought to sideline the Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR) and create a coalition between Solidarnoà ÂÃÂ, the Alliance of Democrats and United People's Party - formerly PZPR's satellite parties.
However, Mazowiecki, soon after assuming the office of Prime Minister, fell out with Waà ÂÃÂsa and the Kaczyà Âski brothers, rejecting their influence and pursuing a liberal and reformist course for Poland.
The Movement was founded on 16 July 1990 as a faction within the by its reformist members, which supported Mazowiecki. It often collaborated with two different factions of Solidarnoà ÂÃÂ, Mazowiecki's Democratic Union (UD) and Aleksander Hall's Forum of the Democratic Right.
The party declared itself as a counterforce to the Centre Agreement, primarily clashing on the issue of PZPR within the Sejm. While PC wanted to sideline the communists and later post-communists, ROAD were open to cooperation with reformists and liberals within PZPR. Before ROAD's formal founding, its future members sought to establish a coalition between Solidarnoà Âàand PZPR's reformist wing. During the first lustration proceedings in the first Sejm, members of the Democratic Union (UD) and Liberal Democratic Congress (KLD), which derived from ROAD, were, along the post-communists, lustration's only opponents.
Lech Waà Âesa planned to see himself elected President by the National Assembly (a joint sitting of the Sejm and Senate). However, in September 1990, ROAD blocked Waà ÂÃÂsa's initiative, and forced through a general presidential election, which occurred two months later. Despite declaring itself not to be part of Mazowiecki's political base, they were allies, and its leadership were among the Prime Minister's political advisors in the conflict between Mazowiecki and Waà ÂÃÂsa, which the latter would famously label the "" ().
The 1990 Polish presidential election saw ROAD support Mazowiecki's candidacy against Waà ÂÃÂsa, who was backed by PC. The notoriously uncharismatic Mazowiecki was thoroughly humiliated, falling third, behind dark horse candidate Stanisà Âaw Tymià Âski. Tymià Âski was seen as a threat to the Solidarnoà Âàestablishment, which forced Mazowiecki to begrudgingly endorse Waà Âesa in the second round - which Waà ÂÃÂsa won with a historic 74.25% of the vote. Mazowiecki's humiliation in the first round led to his resignation on 12 January 1991.
In January 1991, ROAD held a Congress, where they elected Wà Âadysà Âaw Frasyniuk as the group's leader. It also decided to secede from the Citizens' Parliamentary Club, and form its own, the "Parliamentary Club - Democratic Union" ().
Largely losing relevance following Mazowiecki's resignation, on 11 May 1991, the group merged, alongside FPD, into the Democratic Union, to contest the 1991 Polish parliamentary election as one party. The Democratic Union would be the first Sejm's largest party until FPD seceded from it again later.
Left-leaning dissidents led by Zbigniew Bujak, which were against joining UD, split off and formed the social democratic Democratic-Social Movement in March 1991.
The Movement supported parliamentary democracy, political pluralism, the rule of law, separation of powers, judicial independence, restricting the powers of the state, expanded local governance. Its support was rooted in Poland's intelligentsia and middle class.
Despite attempts to distance itself from the "liberal" label, and calling for a social market economy, they supported the decisively liberal, free-market economic reforms of Leszek Balcerowicz, along with his program of mass privatization of government enterprises. However, in March 1991, they also sought to forge an agreement between trade unions and employers and the government. One of the leaders, Zbigniew Bujak, called for ROAD to adopt ideals of social democracy.
Despite not following the ideals of communism, it was also not anti-communist like the majority of Poland's political groupings at the time. It rejected the labels of leftism or rightism, instead saying it fell "to the west of center".