What does far-right election victory mean for Austria?
The anti-migrant Freedom Party 'downplays its Nazi past' but has 'deep roots' in Austrian politics
The far-right has won the most votes in an Austrian election for the first time since the Nazi era, as the pro-Kremlin, anti-Islam Freedom Party (FPÖ) beat the ruling centre-right People's Party (ÖVP).
FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl told supporters in Vienna that it was a "piece of history that we have written together today". The party, founded by former Nazis just a decade after the end of the Second World War, won 29.2% of the votes. ÖVP came second with 26.5%.
The Social Democratic Party finished with 21%, the worst result in its history, while the ÖVP's junior coalition partner, the Greens, suffered a big drop in support, coming fifth with 8.3%.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Turnout was high, with nearly 80% of eligible Austrians voting. "The results today couldn't have been clearer," said Kickl, who has insisted that his party should lead the next government.
What did the commentators say?
By "profiting from a rightwing surge in many parts of Europe and taking Hungary's Viktor Orbán as a model", the FPÖ has successfully "capitalised on fears around migration, asylum and crime", said The Guardian. These fears were "heightened by the August cancellation of three Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna over an alleged Islamist terror plot".
But the party had seen a "huge leap in support since the last election in 2019, a result of "mounting inflation, tepid economic growth and lingering resentment over strict government measures during Covid".
The results represent a "remarkable comeback" for the FPÖ, which was "humiliated" five years ago, during its coalition with the ÖVP. Heinz-Christian Strache, vice-chancellor and chairman of the FPÖ at the time, was caught on camera pledging government contracts to a woman pretending to be the niece of a Russian oligarch. The so-called "Ibiza-gate" scandal led to Strache's resignation and the collapse of the coalition.
Although the party "downplays its Nazi past and seeks to portray itself as an anti-establishment alternative to the mainstream centre right and left", it "regularly uses antisemitic fascist tropes to stir its base" said Politico. The FPÖ ran on an overtly "anti-foreigner platform" in this election, vowing to "erect a 'Fortress Austria' to keep out migrants". Kickl also promised voters that should his party win, he would serve as their Volkskanzler – "people's chancellor" – the same term once used by Adolf Hitler.
And a reminder of "the depth of the party's affinity for a Third Reich aesthetic" was provided this weekend at the funeral of a long-serving FPÖ politician, "where mourners sent off their comrade by singing an SS anthem". Such "excesses" will make it difficult for the FPÖ to build a coalition, "but not impossible", said Politico.
The FPÖ's success echoes far-right gains in countries like Italy, the Netherlands and Germany. But unlike parties such as Germany's AfD, which was "formed in reaction to Eurozone policies in 2013", the FPÖ has "deep roots" in Austrian politics, and has "held power at a federal level three times, in coalition with other groupings, making it one of just a few far-right parties in Europe to have done so", said CNN.
What next?
The FPÖ fell short of an outright majority, meaning it will need coalition partners to govern. While most centrist parties have ruled out working with the far right, the ÖVP hasn’t dismissed the possibility, "as it has twice in the past in taboo-breaking alliances at the national level", said The Guardian.
However, Chancellor Karl Nehammer has made it clear that Kickl becoming chancellor is a "non-starter". This sets up "a potential showdown in which the FPÖ would have to either jettison Kickl or take a backseat in government to win the ÖVP’s support".
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Sorcha Bradley is a writer at The Week and a regular on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast. She worked at The Week magazine for a year and a half before taking up her current role with the digital team, where she mostly covers UK current affairs and politics. Before joining The Week, Sorcha worked at slow-news start-up Tortoise Media. She has also written for Sky News, The Sunday Times, the London Evening Standard and Grazia magazine, among other publications. She has a master’s in newspaper journalism from City, University of London, where she specialised in political journalism.
-
Today's political cartoons - December 21, 2024
Cartoons Saturday's cartoons - losing it, pedal to the metal, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Three fun, festive activities to make the magic happen this Christmas Day
Inspire your children to help set the table, stage a pantomime and write thank-you letters this Christmas!
By The Week Junior Published
-
The best books of 2024 to give this Christmas
The Week Recommends From Percival Everett to Rachel Clarke these are the critics' favourite books from 2024
By The Week UK Published
-
Will California's EV mandate survive Trump, SCOTUS challenge?
Today's Big Question The Golden State's climate goal faces big obstacles
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Why are lawmakers ringing the alarms about New Jersey's mysterious drones?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Unexplained lights in the night sky have residents of the Garden State on edge, and elected officials demanding answers
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Assad's future life in exile
The Explainer What lies ahead for the former Syrian dictator, now he's fled to Russia?
By Elizabeth Carr-Ellis, The Week UK Published
-
Will Biden clear out death row before leaving office?
Today's Big Question Trump could oversee a 'wave of executions' otherwise
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
News overload
Opinion Too much breaking news is breaking us
By Theunis Bates Published
-
How will the rebels rule Syria?
Today's Big Question Fall of Assad regime is a 'historic opportunity' and a 'moment of huge peril' for country and region
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK Published
-
The potential effects of Israel's ceasefire with Hezbollah
THE EXPLAINER With the possibility of a region-wide war fading, the Palestinian militant group Hamas faces increased isolation and limited options
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
South Korean president faces rising impeachment odds
speed read Opposition lawmakers said they would vote to impeach President Yoon Suk Yeol following his recent imposition of martial law
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published