'Huge gains' for Austria's centre-right

BBC News ^ | November 24, 2002 | BBC News

[MadIvan]

Initial results from Austria's general election suggest the centre-right People's Party of Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel is making sweeping gains.

Result predictions (1999 results in brackets)
People's Party: 42.3% (26%)
Social Democrats: 36.9% (33%)
Freedom Party: 10.2% (26.9%)
Greens: 9.0% (7.4)

But Austria's other outgoing coalition partner, Joerg Haider's far-right Freedom Party, has been stripped of nearly two-thirds of its previous support.

The People's Party looks likely to take nearly 43% of the vote, according to preliminary results released by the interior ministry.

If the estimates prove correct, it will be the best ever result for the party, and put it in the lead for the first time since 1966.

Another coalition?

The success of the People's Party appears to be at the expense of the Freedom Party, after months of infighting that forced popular moderates out of government and left it dominated by rightists loyal to Joerg Haider.

But all may not be over for Mr Haider. Chancellor Schuessel may still try to form another coalition government with the Freedom Party.

The last coalition between the two parties caused an outcry in Europe when it first took office nearly three years ago, because of Mr Haider's extreme right, anti-EU views.

The opposition Social Democrat Party say they expect a new centre-right coalition, and have already conceded defeat, saying they would rather be in opposition than form a coalition with the conservatives.

"The OeVP [People's Party] has clearly won. I congratulate them," said Socialist leader Alfred Gusenbauer.

Negotiations on the new government begin on Monday and are expected to take weeks.

Undecided

Sunday's election was held a year early, following the collapse of the controversial coalition between the Freedom Party and the People's Party.

During their three years in government, the People's Party shifted sharply to the right, while the Social Democrats - in opposition for the first time in three decades - moved to the left.

Opinion polls suggested the vote would be neck-and-neck between the People's Party and the Social Democrats.

But the latest computer predictions suggest the Social Democrats will pick up about 36%, with the Greens trailing in fourth place on about 9%.

For both parties, that would be a slight increase on their 1999 performances.

Before polling began, a significant number of Austrian voters said they were still undecided about who to vote for - and some said they would stay away from the polls altogether.

"It's not very interesting because most of the parties don't have many differing points of view. I really don't pay any attention to it," was one view.

Outrage

The final polls in big cities like Vienna and Innsbruck closed at 1700 (1600 GMT) but some voting stations in the mountains closed much earlier.

The 1999 elections shook Europe when the Freedom Party - then led by Joerg Haider - came in second with 25%, scoring its best ever result and winning a place in government.

The victory of the anti-immigration, anti-EU party provoked outrage in the European Union.

The party's entry into government brought an end to years of cosy "Grand Coalition" rule between the Social Democrats and the People's Party.

[MadIvan]

We should cheer this because, first, the right won, and second, Haider, who is friends with Saddam Hussein, got kicked in the goolies. Also, Arnold came out for the People's Party and that may have made the difference.

Ausgezeichnet.

Regards, Ivan

[MadIvan]

Bump!

[Sparta]

This is good news. If only the German Bundestag can force Schroder into a no-confidence vote.

[ex-Texan]

More news from Germany:

Latest on Schroder's Coming Public Humiliation

[NormsRevenge]

Sun Nov 24, 3:49 PM ET

Austrian Chancellor and leader of the Peoples Party, Wolfgang Schuessel waves as he arrives at the party's headquater on polling Sunday in Vienna, Nov. 24, 2002. (AP Photo/Martin Gnedt)

[crystalk]

What we have is more Haiderism, less Haider.

This new regime is going to be further right at its outset than the previous regime was when IT took office.

[Little Bill]

Austria and the Italians are historicly a good predictor of Euro trends, I sniff a move to the right in the EU, possible?

[MinorityRepublican]

Joerg Haider's far-right Freedom Party

I am getting tired of this. Anything right of the media is classified as "far right". But I have a question, how come I have not heard anything about "far right American President visits Europe"?

[Malcolm]

LOL, the far right discredits the center-right, where conservatives can get the most done. I'm glad that the center-right party there has increased it's vote, and the far-right has lost most of theirs. Now, instead of having to tread lightly, the government can enact laws that are meaningful to conservatives, and that without Haider and Co. Trend for Europe? Probably not, but there are a lot more conservative gov'ts in Europe now than 5 years ago. I'll take any victories the conservatives can get. If the far-right gets reduced at the expense of the center-right, it would not break this conservative's heart.....

[Dog Gone]

Austria and the Italians are historicly a good predictor of Euro trends, I sniff a move to the right in the EU, possible?

Actually, conservatives (at least in the European sense) already won elections in Holland and France this year, and barely missed in Sweden and Germany.

[FreedomPoster]

Ping. Good news to the southeast.

[Little Bill]

Austria, in 1999, Italia, 2000, interesting?

[glc1173@aol.com]

"What we have is more Haiderism, less Haider."

Indeed, this is a huge win for Haider. Wherever he is, he's smiling now!

[DoughtyOne]

First of all, is that flag presented in it's proper proportions?  I had wondered if it truly was that much thinner than our flag.

There are several issues with regard to Austria's political environment that make it difficult for me to assess what's truly going on there.  Haider has been a lightening rod for some, and it appears you are in that camp.  I have no problem with that, if Haider is truly as you represent him.  Is he truly an advocate of Hussein?  Does he sympathize with Hitler's motives and past plans?

The reason I ask this, is that I can't trust the media at all.  I have seen what they do to conservatives in our nation.  Ronald Reagan was evil incarnate to them.  He wanted to starve old folks and start WWIII as well.  Heck, they've tried the same thing with Bush, but couldn't make it stick.  Some of them have slacked off.  Then they refer to leftists like Bill Crystal, Senator's Hatch and Lott as staunch conservatives.  It's a hoot to watch them set up their straw men to front for them.

Is Haider the Adolf Hitler the media says he is?  The worst that I have seen of him was his advocacy of stopping the flooding of his nation with foreign nationals.  Having seen the devistation created by this in my own region, I can understand his position on this.

What I am very comfortable in saying is this, if the liberal media in Europe casts the People's party as centrist Conservative, or even moderatly right, then it's a lead pipe cinch the party is being set up to silence any voice of reason eminating from folks who wish to slavage their own historical heritage, and in no way reflects reasoned Conservative values.

Now, that being said, Austria has some historical heritage that should not be salvaged.  And that presents a problem for me as well.  Is Haider truly trying to salvage that historical heritage, or is this a convenient charge from those who wish to silence reasoned nationalists?

[MadIvan]

I didn't care about Haider one way or another until he visited Saddam along with George Galloway.

The Times said back on the 22nd of November:

The essence of Haider was his Messianic complex.... Herr Haider shows no signs of public self-doubt. Only the other day he travelled to Baghdad to shake hands with President Saddam Hussein to save Austria and the rest of the globe. Back in the real world his party has crumbled around him and the nation has grown up. It no longer wants salvation; it wants practical solutions offered by soberly dressed men.

Anyone who shakes hands with Saddam is not worth our pity or consideration.

Regards, Ivan

[let freedom sing]

OMG-- they must be mad as H### and can't take it anymore... and that's a good thing. :-)

[knighthawk]

Must be thanks to Arnold!

[DoughtyOne]

Are you aware that the Pope was going to visit Iraq until Iraq withdrew it's support for him to do so? Provide a little more information if you wish to tarnish Haider just because he visited Baghdad. Like it or not, some nations do business with Iraq.

[MadIvan]

I will find the article for you, but I am telling you he was there with George Galloway and burning a picture of President Bush no less. I remember that distinctly - it was the time I finally had an opinion of Haider. You'll find hitherto I've said very little about him.

Regards, Ivan

[DoughtyOne]

Thanks. I'd like read about that. BTW, what's the answer on the flag.