Austria: People’s Party claim resounding victory in parliamentary elections, November 2002

The Austrian centre-right People's Party (ÖVP), led by Chancellor Schüssel, have claimed a resounding victory in the country's parliamentary elections held on 24 November 2002.

The ÖVP recorded their best ever result winning 42.3% of the votes, up more than 16 points since the last general election in 1999, although not enough to give them an overall majority. The Social Democrats (SPÖ) took second place with 36.9%, an increase of 3% from 1999.

The biggest losers on election night were Jörg Haider's Freedom Party who lost two thirds of their supporters from the last election when they recorded the second largest vote. The far-right party has been condemned internationally for of its extreme right, anti-EU views.

After the last election, the Freedom Party and the People's Party joined together to form a coalition government with the ÖVP's leader Wolfgang Schüssel appointed as Chancellor. Jörg Haider stepped down from his role as leader of the party in May 2000 after international condemnation of his policies to be replaced by Susanne Riess-Passer, the Austrian vice-chancellor, who pledged absolute loyalty to Mr Haider. However, repeated internal rows in the party, spurred by a dip in opinion polls, followed and Mr. Haider did not hesitate to consistently and publicly criticise decisions of the Freedom Party cabinet ministers. A row in September 2002 over when tax cuts should be implemented appears to have been the final straw and Susanne Riess-Passer resigned along with two other ministers.

The Chancellor, frustrated by the bitter rows at the heart of the Freedom party, announced on 9 September 2002 that his conservative party would be withdrawing from the coalition government and that parliamentary elections would be held in November 2002, almost a year earlier than planned. Analysts predicted that the elections would see the demise of the Freedom Party and that the conservative party would also see a downward turn in support. The Social Democrats, who won the most number of votes in 1999, were expected to be returned to power after being ousted three years ago following 30 years in government. Indeed, some believed that they might form a coalition with the Greens but they only claimed 9% of the vote in the November election, not enough for the two parties to take office.

The question now is which party will join forces with the People's Party to form a coalition government. Mr. Schüssel has indicated that he will hold talks with all three parties but the negotiations may take weeks. A return to the centre-left alliance, which ruled Austria for most of the period from the end of World War II to the beginning of the 21st Century, looks unlikely since the leader of the Social Democrat party, Alfred Gusebauer, said that 'at the end of the day, the Social Democrats will be in opposition'. Yet a coalition with the Freedom Party is also improbable because its new leader, Herbert Haupt, has already announced that the party will not form part of the coalition if Finance Minister Karl Heinz Grasser is part of it. Mr Grasser switched his support from the Freedom Party to ÖVP in September and Wolfgang Schüssel has said that he cannot imagine a government without Mr Grasser. The only remaining option would be a coalition between the People's Party and the Greens.

Links:
BBC News Online:
	25.11.02:	Austria political map redrawn
	25.11.02:	Jörg Haider's fall from grace
	09.09.02:	Far right row topples coalition
European Sources Online: Financial Times:
	25.11.02:	Schüssel wins in Austria after voters reject right
	25.11.02:	Poll tactics of Austrian chancellor pay dividends
Austrian Government:
	Homepage
Austrian People's Party:
	Homepage
Austrian Social Democrats:
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Austrian Green Party:
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Austrian Freedom Party:
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European Sources Online: Topic Guides:
	Information on European Countries: Austria

Helen Bower
Compiled: Monday, 25 November 2002

The Austrian centre-right People's Party (ÖVP), led by Chancellor Schüssel, claimed a resounding victory in the country's parliamentary elections held on 24 November 2002.