1972 General Election - Austrian Election Series

The election in the turbulent year of 1968 continued the ever-present trend of the sixties: gains for the VdU - later the LKP, which peaked now at 43%, within reach of an absolute majority; KPÖ and SPÖ around twenty percent each, the CSP keeping their 1964 result, and the FPÖ barely above the threshold. Kreisky's incumbent government would have kept their majority, but Klaus' LKP was able to bring the CSP on their side, forming a new, centre-right government which would lead Austria into a new decade.

The Klaus government was sworn in just before Christmas, and Karl Gruber stayed on as Vice-Chancellor and Foreign Minister. Soon after, the issue of the promised but so far not-realized autonomy for South Tyrol was brought before the UN General Assembly, forcing Italy to act within its borders. In 1970, a commission composed of Italians, Austrians and South Tyroleans of all three language groups was formed in Bolzano, presenting results with a second statute of autonomy passed by both Austria and Italy in 1972, which would subsequently gradually be implemented.

Foreign questions aside, the new government presided over quiet years of stable, continued growth and passed few reforms, neither in regards to economical policy nor to social issues, to a vehement left opposition which demanded such to follow the other Western European nations like France or Germany, but to the goodwill of the ever popular and potent Catholic Church.

Elections were called in September 1972, the fourth year of the government. While Chancellor Klaus expressed his wish to continue the coalition with the CSP after the election, Karl Gruber was determined to "keep all options open".

LKP:
The Chancellor's party campaigns on the continuing stable growth and in general quite times Austria has seen in the years before, presenting themselves as the option for anyone preferring the status quo. They received heavy tailwinds when Pope Pius called Austria an "island of the lucky" during a state visit of the President in the Vatican, using the quote extensively while trying to appeal to religious people.

CSP:
The junior coalition partner, Karl Gruber's CSP, is as always strong in their heartland Tyrol, having received a great boost in popularity with the sucessful diplomatic talks with Italy in regards to South Tyrol. They position themselves clearly to the left of the LKP on issues regarding the economy, but strongly within the realms of the church in regards to social issues, presenting an "agrarian populist" option of sorts.

KPÖ:
The Communists are the largest opposition party, and they and their longtime leader, Ernst Fischer, are the most vocal opponents of Klaus' government. They loudly demand reforms in the judical sector, advocating for an abolition of the death penalty and finally full equality before the law for women and men, stating that the present situation, where women need their father's or their spouse's signature for various tasks, for instance signing most contracts or marrying or opening a bank account, is unfit "for an Austria that looks forwards, not backwards".

SPÖ:
Despite small gains, Bruno Kreisky had to resign as SPÖ leader after the new government was formed, and subsequently left the political scene. His sucessor as leader was former Justice Minister Christian Broda, known as an ideological purist of the party's left wing. Accordingly, the party is running significantly further to the left than in previous years, emphasising on social justice and reforms especially to the education system, namely providing better chances in life through better education for worker's and rural farmer's children. The SPÖ's new left turn has prompted pundits to claim "the only difference remaining between SPÖ and KPÖ, socialists and communists, is their position during the Second International".

FPÖ
The FPÖ is struggling to stay in parliament, and has furthermore been robbed of their main talking point, opposition to the KPÖ's involvement in parliament. Their new strategy, besides trying to hide their obvious connections to former Nazis, is to provide an alternative coalition partner for the LKP, after said party's right wing has started to voice dissatisfaction with one, in their views, "farmer's socialist" party, instead preferring the more right-wing, more economically liberal, FPÖ.

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