(ANSA-AFP) - WARSAW, 18 MAG - Poles go to the polls today for presidential elections that will be decisive for the future of the centrist government and for some basic rights, such as Lgbtq rights and abortion. According to polls, the pro-European mayor of Warsaw, Rafal Trzaskowski, is expected to get 30 percent, ahead of the historic nationalist Karol Nawrocki, who stands at 25 percent. That would put both on the June 1 ballot at a particularly tense time for Europe, with Russia's invasion of Ukraine lingering, the continued rise of far-right populists, and strained relations with Washington. Polls opened at 7 a.m. and will close at 9 p.m., the time when exit polls will be published. There are 13 candidates in total and final results are not expected until Monday. Since former EU leader Donald Tusk's coalition came to power in 2023, major government initiatives have been blocked by the veto of nationalist President Andrzej Duda. (ANSA-AFP).