The far right is soaring during the legislative elections taking place today in Austria. At the end of the vote, the Freedom Party (Fpo) led by Herbert Kickl won with 28.8% of the votes: a jump of more than 12 points compared to the previous round. The ÖVP, the People's Party led by outgoing Chancellor Karl Nehammer, stops a little further behind, at 26.2%, but this is a decline compared to 2019. The social democrats of the SPO are third with 21.1%, while the Greens stop at 8.3%, overtaken by the Neos. The first to seal the victory was Michael Schnedlitz, spokesperson for the FPÖ: “Thank you, thank you to all voters: today the Austrians have made history. The population has clearly expressed itself in favor of change,” commented the representative of the ultra-right just a few minutes after the publication of the first exit polls. Then the party leader and candidate for chancellor also intervened: “The results could not have been clearer, now we are ready to lead a government,” said Herbert Kickl, inviting other parties to demonstrate their level of democracy, given that “we cannot continue like this in the future. this country.”
“Fortress Austria” and the Chancellor in difficulty
The FPÖ ran a long and difficult election campaign under the slogan “Fortress Austria”. The recipe is that of a total closure to immigrants, including the suspension of the right to asylum (incompatible with European and international law) and the expulsion of “uninvited foreigners”. The party, which has always been close to that of Vladimir Putin, also advocates the suspension of sanctions against Russia for the war in Ukraine. And his team features neo-Nazi characters and themes. This is also the reason why Austrian People's Party leader and outgoing Chancellor Karl Nehammer presented Kickl as an inaccessible extremist during the election campaign. And this evening, at the close of the elections, he recognized the overtaking of the FPÖ by the right, but reaffirmed that “what I said before the elections, I will also say after”. The two parties have already governed together more than once in the recent past. But never with the ÖVP in a supporting role.
Possible consultations and coalitions
The President of the Republic Alexander Van der Bellen, from the ranks of the Greens, will have to resolve the problem in the coming days (or weeks). “Now is the time to build bridges, to talk to each other, to negotiate to find good and solid compromises,” Van der Bellen told the parties ahead of the consultations. It should be understood that the solution is probably not close. “Finding these solutions can take time, ladies and gentlemen: time well spent. » If the center-right and the far right cannot agree, another hypothesis on the ground is that of a grand coalition between the historical enemies of the Ovp (People's Party) and the Spo (social democrats). Regardless, painful compromises will be necessary for at least some.
On the cover: Herbert Kickl, leader of the FPO, during the closing meeting of the electoral campaign – Vienna, September 29, 2024 (EPA/FILIP SINGER)
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