This weekend, Poland is set to hold elections to choose a new parliament, following a fiercely contested campaign in which each side has portrayed the other as a grave national threat.

The incumbent right-wing Law and Justice party (PiS) is striving to secure an unprecedented third term in office. They argue that the opposition would undermine Poland through mass migration and turmoil.

On the other hand, the centrist main opposition Civic Coalition aims to end the eight-year rule of PiS, contending that the party itself poses a threat to Polish democracy.

Throughout the campaign, both sides have employed highly personalized attacks, demonizing each other's leaders. However, recent opinion polls suggest that neither of the major parties is headed for an outright majority, intensifying the final days and hours of campaigning.

In every corner of Poland, lampposts and railings are adorned with images of election candidates, offering a diverse array of choices, from the far-right Confederation, which seeks to reduce aid to Ukraine, to a left-wing party advocating for LGBT rights and the restoration of abortion rights.

Nevertheless, the spotlight in this election has largely focused on two men and two parties: Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the leader of PiS, and Donald Tusk, the head of Civic Coalition.

On Friday, in Starachowice, located south of Warsaw, Jaroslaw Kaczynski reiterated his belief that a Poland led by Donald Tusk would, in reality, be under the influence of "a phone call from Berlin or Moscow."

He has consistently painted his rival as a puppet of both Russia and Germany: the logic doesn't matter as much as the suggestion that Mr Tusk is unpatriotic and a security threat.

Mr Kaczynski pointed to his own party's massive boost in military spending, with both Russia and Ukraine on Poland's border.

Stoking fear about migration is another PiS favorite, including endless footage on state TV highlighting protests and riots in Europe.

The party leader stressed that PiS would "absolutely reject" an EU relocation plan for illegal migrants.

But he also had a positive message for the final stretch of the campaign.

"We have offered Poles a better life," Mr Kaczynski told voters, mentioning higher wages and pensions. "This election is about whether that will continue."

Donald Tusk contends that continuing with PiS would be a disaster.

While Poland has won plaudits for its role in supporting Ukraine since the Russian invasion, there's real concern about its commitment to defending key elements of democracy at home.

The EU is withholding large amounts of funding over the politicization of Poland's courts.

Civic Coalition highlights that issue, as well as increased control of the press and far more antagonism with Europe - trends that it worries will intensify if PiS is re-elected.

Some fear the trajectory is so bad, it could undermine Poland's membership in the EU itself.

On Friday, though, all of Donald Tusk's talk was of winning.

"We are one step away from victory," he claimed in a final campaign speech, before urging supporters to monitor Sunday's election for fraud.

That includes abroad, where more than 600,000 Poles, a record number, have registered to vote. In the past, expats have favored the opposition. Officials in the Netherlands have even urged people to head for Germany or Belgium instead, to avoid long queues.

The government has called a national referendum to be held in tandem with the election to parliament, posing questions that seem designed to get PiS supporters to the polls.

One asks whether "thousands of illegal immigrants" should be allowed into Poland, as "imposed" by the EU.

This week, PiS also announced cash payments for groups including brass bands and housewives' clubs in small municipalities - where it tends to do best - if more than 60% of voters come out to vote.

It has already increased the number of polling stations in such areas, arguing that boosting participation is good for democracy.

It is possible that neither PiS nor Civic Coalition will win enough to govern alone.

If Law and Justice wins most votes, it might try to govern as a minority or it could seek a coalition with Confederation, assuming the far-right party wins enough seats.

Either way, the prospect of a party with a record of racism and homophobia holding the key to power is disturbing to some.

Should that combination prove impossible, the door to an opposition coalition might open.

"A vote cast in these elections is not only an expression of our beliefs and values, it also determines the direction in which Poland should develop," the PiS-backed President Andrzej Duda urged voters on the last of campaigning.

"Today we have different visions to choose from."

That's one thing on which opposition supporters agree.

"We've had enough," an editorial in the Gazeta Wyborcza newspaper announced on Friday.

"If the democrats lose now, we will face pure authoritarianism in Russian-Turkish-Hungarian colors… But another Poland is within reach."