VIENNA: Austria’s general election on Sunday is poised to be a closely contested race that could see the far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) emerge victorious for the first time, potentially surpassing the ruling conservatives.
Reflecting a broader trend among far-right parties in Europe, the FPOe has experienced a significant surge in popularity in recent months.
Although the FPOe has been part of previous Austrian coalitions, it may struggle to find partners to lead a government even if it secures the most votes on Sunday. “It is a time of change. The FPOe has never been this strong in recent years,” said Johanna Irrenfried, a 32-year-old orthoptist from Vienna.
Emphasizing its anti-establishment stance, FPOe leader Herbert Kickl has campaigned with slogans like “Courageously try something new,” tapping into voter frustration over issues such as migration, inflation, and COVID-19 restrictions. Meanwhile, conservative Chancellor Karl Nehammer has narrowed the gap in recent weeks, with his People’s Party (OeVP) polling at 25 percent, just behind the FPOe’s 27 percent.
Nehammer has managed to position his party at the center of the political spectrum, according to Andreas Eisl, a researcher at the Jacques Delors Institute. Recent flooding caused by Storm Boris across central and eastern Europe briefly halted campaigning and underscored concerns about climate change, a topic the FPOe largely dismisses. Nehammer assured supporters that his party aims to “solve problems, not feed off them,” promising “stability instead of chaos.”
On Friday, the FPOe planned a rally in Vienna’s upscale first district, a departure from its usual venues in working-class areas. Kickl, who revitalized the party in 2021 amid scandals, has criticized EU sanctions on Russia regarding the war in Ukraine.
“This is a decisive election on Sunday,” said Rachel Schwarzboeck, a 74-year-old retiree with Jewish and Polish roots, expressing her strong opposition to the FPOe, which she associates with past Nazi ideologies. “I don’t want a Nazi regime in power in Austria,” she asserted.
Nehammer, who currently leads a coalition with the Greens, reiterated his refusal to partner with Kickl, who has dubbed himself the future “Volkskanzler,” a title reminiscent of Adolf Hitler. President Alexander Van der Bellen has also expressed reluctance to see Kickl take the helm in Austria, where over 6.3 million people are eligible to vote.
To prevent a Kickl-led government, a potential coalition could emerge involving the OeVP, the Social Democrats—currently polling just above 20 percent—and possibly the liberal NEOS. Should the OeVP secure a significant number of seats, analysts suggest a coalition with the far-right could occur, albeit with the FPOe in a junior role.
The two parties share overlapping views on many issues, leading Eisl to suggest that “creative solutions” could be crafted to navigate a partnership with Kickl. However, the first OeVP-FPOe coalition in 2000 sparked widespread protests and sanctions from Brussels, and past alliances have often been short-lived.
The most recent coalition, led by former OeVP leader Sebastian Kurz, collapsed in 2019 following an FPOe corruption scandal just 18 months into its term.
