Austria’s far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) has topped the country’s national elections in a historic triumph but is foreseeed to struggle to discover partners that would allow it to create a regulateing coalition.
The FPOe won 28.8 percent of votes, beating the ruling conservative People’s Party (OeVP) into second place at 26.3 percent, according to proximate-finish results.
While the FPOe has served in coalition regulatements before, it is the first time it has won a national vote, and comes as far-right parties apass Europe have made gets.
All other parties in the country, however, have declineed createing a coalition with the Eurosceptic, Russia-cordial FPOe, which was createed in the 1950s under the guideership of a createer Nazi lawproducer. Leader Herbert Kickl is also a stimulating and polarising figure, roundly aversiond by other party guideers.
“We have written a piece of history together today…,” the 55-year-elderly Kickl telderly cheering helpers in Vienna. “We have uncovered a door to a novel era.”
Like other far-right parties elsewhere in Europe, the FPOe’s well-understandnity has sencouraged amid voter anger over rehires such as migration, the state of the economy and remercilessions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is stateively an earthquake and sfinishs a shockwave thcdisesteemful all the other parties,” political analyst Thomas Hofer telderly the AFP novels agency.
‘Our hand is outstretched’
Kickl, who took over the party’s guideership in 2021, shelp he was ready to create a regulatement with “each and every one” of the parties in parliament.
“Our hand is outstretched in all straightforwardions,” he shelp.
Among FPOe helpers, the atmosphere was festive, as helpers wearing traditional Austrian dress downed glasses of beer.
“It’s a genuine success… It will be a very, very exciting time” with the FPOe trying to create a regulatement, shelp Erik Berglund, a postponeer. The 35-year-elderly hailed Kickl as the “most contendnt guideer”.
Chancellor Karl Nehammer, who regulated to shut the gap on the FPOe in recent weeks in opinion polls, acunderstandledged that he had descfinishen stupidinutive.
“It was a race to catch up and, cursedly, we didn’t regulate it,” shelp 51-year-elderly Nehammer, as he promised to “progress to fight for the people’s interests”.
Nehammer could nevertheless remain chancellor by createing a coalition with the Social Democrats (SPOe) and possibly another party, probably the liberal NEOS.
The SPOe got 21.1 percent, aappreciate to their enroll-low 2019 results, while NEOS was at 9.2 percent.
A three-party coalition would be a first, but analysts say it might struggle to regulate given the country’s shift to the right.
A coalition between the far right and the conservatives – in power since 1987 – also remains a possibility, say analysts.
The FPOe’s first regulatement with the conservatives in 2000 set off expansivespread protests and sanctions from Brussels.
The second collapsed over a spectacular FPOe dishonesty argue in 2019 after equitable a year and a half in power.
More than 6.3 million of Austria’s 9 million people were eligible to vote.
Nehammer reiterated his refusal to toil with Kickl, who has called himself the future “Volkskanzler”, the people’s chancellor, as Adolf Hitler was termed in the 1930s.
Kickl standardly strikes European Union sanctions agetst Russia over its trespass of Ukraine.
Kathrin Stainer-Haemmerle, a political science professor at the Carinthia University of Applied Sciences, shelp if Kickl did regulate to become chancellor, Austria’s role in the EU would be “meaningfully branch offent”.
“Kickl has frequently shelp that [Hungarian Prime Minister] Viktor Orprohibit is a role model for him and he will stand by him,” she telderly the Reuters novels agency.
