Poland's ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party was ahead in a national election, partial official results showed this afternoon.
The official results from 50% of voting districts gave PiS just over 38% of votes, while the liberal Civic Coalition was in second place with just under 28%.
The centre-right Third Way was third with just over 14%, New Left had just over 8% and the far-right Confederation were just over 7%.
Poland's liberal opposition Civic Coalition appeared on track to win a parliamentary majority, exit polls showed, a day after a national election which saw the highest turnout since the fall of Communism.
The opposition, led by former EU chief Donald Tusk, has billed the parliamentary elections as the "last chance" to save democracy.
Paving the way for potentially huge change after eight years of nationalist rule, Mr Tusk said late yesterday that a "grim" era had ended.
The surprise exit poll result came after the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) populist party, led by veteran politician Jaroslaw Kaczynski, threw all the state resources into a campaign largely seen as unfair.
The ballot saw a record turnout, beating even the first free elections after the fall of Communism.
The election was dominated by issues such as Russia's invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, migrants and women's rights.
Mr Tusk has promised to liberalise abortion laws.
This issue, according to analysts, prompted an unprecedented mobilisation among women voters and helped tip the balance in favour of the liberal opposition parties.
Aleksandra Metlewicz, a 33-year-old interior designer, said women's rights were "crucial" to her in the vote, and she hoped Poland would come of the "Middle Ages", in which she said it was stuck.
Natalia Szydlik, a 20-year-old student, also hoped Poland's strict abortion laws would be liberalised and said she had "big hopes that things will change".
But, with votes still being counted, heavyweight politicians from both the ruling party and the opposition were largely silent today, when final results are expected.
Kaczynski still has 'hope'
But much still depends on President Andrzej Duda. Analysts warn that any governing coalition formed by the opposition could face run-ins with the president, who is a PiS ally.
PiS meanwhile appeared defiant and has presented the election as a win, since the party appeared to have garnered the most votes.
The conservative figure spoke to reporters on a visit to the Vatican today, praising the high election turnout.
But he urged people to be patient and "wait for the results".
He congratulated the election "winners", but he stopped short of saying who he would back.
PiS meanwhile appeared defiant and has presented the election as a win, since it appeared to have garnered more votes than any other individual party.
The most likely coalition partner for PiS had been Confederation, a far-right party.
But the exit poll showed Pis and Confederation together would fall short of a majority, with a total of just 212 seats.
Mr Kaczynski said he still had "hope" he could form a government.
"This is not a closed road for the moment," he said late yesterday as the exit poll showing an opposition win came in.
The most likely coalition partner for PiS had been Confederation, a far-right party that has called for an end to Poland's large-scale assistance for Ukraine and has campaigned on a strongly anti-migrant platform.
But Confederation had publicly ruled out such an alliance and some analysts said it was unlikely to happen because of simmering tensions between the two parties.
Projections based on preliminary results and exit polls by Ipsos showed the Civic Coalition could win 158 seats in the 460-seat parliament.
Two smaller parties which are potential allies, Third Way and Left, were set to win 61 and 30 seats respectively.
That would give the three together a majority of 249.
Explainer: How the next Polish government will be chosen
'Very happy'
For eight years, Law and Justice has put Poland on a collision course with the EU - with controversial judicial reforms, a refusal to take in migrants and hardline abortion policies.
PiS increased nationalist rhetoric in its campaign and even entered a row with its war-torn neighbour Ukraine, despite huge Polish solidarity to help Kyiv in the face of the Russian invasion.
Mr Tusk served as Poland's prime minister between 2007 and 2014 and as European Council president between 2014 and 2019.
He has vowed to restore relations with Brussels if he returns to power and to legalise abortion - a major point of conflict in the Catholic country.
Many Poles queued late into the evening to cast their vote, in what all parties billed as the most important election since the fall of Communism.
"I am very happy and I believe that finally Poland will be closer to Europe," said Alexandra Metlewicz, a 33-year-old architect.
She said the most important thing in the vote for her were women's rights. Law and Justice presented a hardline Catholic vision for Polish women.
But there were still many questions as to who would be in power the morning after the vote.
Other Poles who, while backing the opposition, were more cautious.
"I am curious as to what will come next and how people who will take power will act," said 42-year-old businessman Karol Jedlinski, adding that he was "far from euphoric".
He struggled to imagine Mr Tusk leading Poland again.
"For me he is more of a figure of the past," he said.
The election campaign was characterised by personal attacks on Mr Tusk by the ruling party, which has accused him of working in the interests of Germany, Russia and the EU.
PiS also ramped up anti-migrant rhetoric, with Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki saying the country should be protected against illegal immigrants "who have no respect for our culture".
Ukraine and its Western supporters have been watching the Polish election closely.
Poland has been a leading cheerleader for Ukraine in the EU and NATO and has taken in a million Ukrainian refugees, but there is growing fatigue among many Poles.
