I was born on 3 December 1956 in Skaryszew near Radom. I graduated from Maria Konopnicka General High School, followed by the Medical Faculty of the Academy of Medicine in Lublin. I chose family medicine and paediatrics as my specialization because helping children and contributing to their welfare was already important to me back then. I also hold specialization in forensic medicine. After graduation, I worked in an emergency service and outpatient clinics in Chlewice and Orońsko. I managed a health care centre in Szydłowiec, my hometown, and I also played the role of a medical expert there. I started my public activities in 1998 when, as a Freedom Union member, and chair of the party in Radom, I obtained a councillor mandate of the first-term Mazovian Provincial Assembly. In 2001, I co-founded the Civic Platform and for the first time, I became an MP representing the Radom constituency. After another election in 2005, I became Chairwoman of the Sejm’s Health Committee and spokesperson for health in the Civic Platform’s shadow cabinet. I was also head of the Mazovian CP structures. In 2007, after the Civic Platform won the elections and Donald Tusk formed a coalition government, I became Minister of Health. I held this function for the entire 7th term of the Sejm. At the same time, I also became the vice-president of the Civic Platform.

After another election won, in 2011, I was elected Speaker of the Sejm. I was the first woman in Polish history to hold this position.  On 15th September 2014, after Donald Tusk was elected head of the European Council, I was appointed Prime Minister. I managed the work of the Polish government until the end of the 8th parliamentary term. I also became president of the Civic Platform. In 2015, I obtained the best individual result in another parliamentary election. The Forbes magazine listed me among the world’s most influential women. I was a member of the Health Committee and the Committee on the European Union, as well as of the shadow cabinet. After 5 terms in the Sejm, I decided to use my experience and and run for an MEP seat in the European Parliament elections in 2019. As a list leader in the the Wielkopolska Province, I obtained the best local result in history and became an MEP.

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT

After the 2019 elections, I was elected Vice-Chairwoman of the European People’s Party (EPP), then appointed Vice-President of the European Parliament and European Parliament Coordinator for Children’s Rights. In the European Parliament, I am an active member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), as well as a deputy in the Committee on Development (DEVE) and the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM). My work in the European Parliament also includes working in three delegations: the Delegation for relations with the countries of Central America, the Delegation to Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly and the Delegation for Relations with the People’s Republic of China. I am also Vice-Chairwoman of the High-level Group on Gender Equality and Diversity, member of the Working Group on Information Policy and Communication, deputy-chair for Neighbourhood Policy and I am active in the Science and Technology Options Assessment panel.  One of my personal priorities also includes the fight against cancer, among other things, by launching a special commission on the prevention, treatment, monitoring and recovery of cancer patients.