Immigration critics against election victory in Austria

Published 6 September 2024 at 16.59

Foreign. The Austrian Freedom Party (FPÖ) looks set to win the upcoming national elections, according to new opinion polls, writes Kronen Zeitung.

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FPÖ has a strong leadership three weeks before the election and is known for its anti-immigration rhetoric and its focus on peace and social issues. The party has been leading the opinion polls since 2022.

According to a survey by the Lazarsfeld Society, carried out for oe24, the FPÖ has 27 percent of the vote, while the center-right party ÖVP comes in second with 23 percent. The national election will be held on September 29.

Although the FPÖ and ÖVP would theoretically have enough votes to form a coalition government, past conflicts may make such cooperation unlikely.

ÖVP ended their previous coalition after FPÖ was involved in the so-called Ibiza scandal. The scandal broke in May 2019, when the German newspapers Süddeutsche Zeitung and Der Spiegel published the so-called Ibiza video.

In the video, which was secretly filmed, Austrian Vice Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache (FPÖ) promises, among other things government contracts in exchange for party funding. The woman he talks to in the video pretends to be the niece of a Russian oligarch.

ÖVP left the cooperation with the FPÖ after this, and after the incident the FPÖ has sharply criticized the ÖVP, which cooperates with the Greens, and which the FPÖ believes has contributed to an increase in illegal immigration and a more war-friendly policy.

According to the survey, the social democratic SPÖ has support from 20 percent of the voters, the Neos get 12 percent, and the Greens are at 8 percent.< /p>

Both the communist KPÖ and Austria's “Beer Party” are struggling to reach the 4 percent barrier to gain seats in parliament.