Far-right prevails in Austrian election
The Freedom Party, campaigning on a strong anti-immigration platform, has successfully unseated Austria's ruling conservative party. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
The Freedom Party of Austria has achieved a significant milestone by winning its first national vote, leading by three points over Chancellor Karl Nehammer’s Austrian People’s Party (OVP), as indicated by an exit poll released on Sunday evening.
The Freedom Party (FPO) received 29.1% of the votes, surpassing the OVP, which garnered 26.2%, and the center-left Social Democrats, who secured 20.4%, according to Austria’s ORF broadcaster. The liberal NEOS party and the Greens finished far behind in fourth and fifth place with 8.8% and 8.6%, respectively.
This electoral result follows the FPO's narrow victory over the OVP in the recent European Parliament election, where the party achieved 25.4% of the vote compared to the OVP's 24.5%.
Although the FPO has been part of Austrian politics since the 1950s, this marks the first time it has outperformed the center-right OVP or the Social Democrats in a national election. The party was part of a conservative coalition government in 1999 and again in 2018, but it was ousted from power the following year amid a corruption scandal involving its then leader, Heinz-Christian Strache.
Under the new leadership of Herbert Kickl, the FPO has made strong commitments to voters, including stringent immigration controls and proposals for the “remigration of uninvited foreigners,” along with a pledge to potentially use emergency powers to suspend the right to asylum. Kickl has also expressed opposition to EU sanctions on Russia, labeling European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen a “warmonger.”
In its manifesto, the FPO has pledged to halt contributions to the EU’s weapons fund for Ukraine, stating, “We stand for an active policy of peace and neutrality.” Additionally, it advocates for Austria to resume its purchases of Russian gas.
Despite its electoral success, it's uncertain whether the FPO will be able to form a government; similar to the situation faced by Germany’s right-wing AFD, most establishment parties in Austria have dismissed the prospect of coalition. Nehammer’s OVP has indicated a willingness to work with the FPO but has ruled out joining a government under Kickl's leadership.
Kickl has a close association with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who shares similar views on immigration and military aid to Ukraine. The FPO, Orban’s Fidesz, and the Czech opposition party ANO recently formed an alliance in the European Parliament, calling themselves 'Patriots for Europe,' with Orban claiming that they aim to become the largest faction of the European right-wing.
The FPO’s victory occurs amid a wider shift towards the right in European politics. After a strong performance in the European Parliament elections in June, France’s National Rally narrowly lost in legislative elections in July due to strategic voting by centrist and left-leaning parties. Similarly, in Germany, the AFD clinched a state-level election victory and finished as a close runner-up in two additional ones this summer, while in the Netherlands, the populist PVV has emerged as the largest party and holds a dominant position in the current coalition government formed in July.
Sanya Singh for TROIB News
The Freedom Party (FPO) received 29.1% of the votes, surpassing the OVP, which garnered 26.2%, and the center-left Social Democrats, who secured 20.4%, according to Austria’s ORF broadcaster. The liberal NEOS party and the Greens finished far behind in fourth and fifth place with 8.8% and 8.6%, respectively.
This electoral result follows the FPO's narrow victory over the OVP in the recent European Parliament election, where the party achieved 25.4% of the vote compared to the OVP's 24.5%.
Although the FPO has been part of Austrian politics since the 1950s, this marks the first time it has outperformed the center-right OVP or the Social Democrats in a national election. The party was part of a conservative coalition government in 1999 and again in 2018, but it was ousted from power the following year amid a corruption scandal involving its then leader, Heinz-Christian Strache.
Under the new leadership of Herbert Kickl, the FPO has made strong commitments to voters, including stringent immigration controls and proposals for the “remigration of uninvited foreigners,” along with a pledge to potentially use emergency powers to suspend the right to asylum. Kickl has also expressed opposition to EU sanctions on Russia, labeling European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen a “warmonger.”
In its manifesto, the FPO has pledged to halt contributions to the EU’s weapons fund for Ukraine, stating, “We stand for an active policy of peace and neutrality.” Additionally, it advocates for Austria to resume its purchases of Russian gas.
Despite its electoral success, it's uncertain whether the FPO will be able to form a government; similar to the situation faced by Germany’s right-wing AFD, most establishment parties in Austria have dismissed the prospect of coalition. Nehammer’s OVP has indicated a willingness to work with the FPO but has ruled out joining a government under Kickl's leadership.
Kickl has a close association with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who shares similar views on immigration and military aid to Ukraine. The FPO, Orban’s Fidesz, and the Czech opposition party ANO recently formed an alliance in the European Parliament, calling themselves 'Patriots for Europe,' with Orban claiming that they aim to become the largest faction of the European right-wing.
The FPO’s victory occurs amid a wider shift towards the right in European politics. After a strong performance in the European Parliament elections in June, France’s National Rally narrowly lost in legislative elections in July due to strategic voting by centrist and left-leaning parties. Similarly, in Germany, the AFD clinched a state-level election victory and finished as a close runner-up in two additional ones this summer, while in the Netherlands, the populist PVV has emerged as the largest party and holds a dominant position in the current coalition government formed in July.
Sanya Singh for TROIB News
