Austrian Elections & Politics 5.0 (Burgenland state election - January 26)

[Tender Branson]

Municipal elections (city councils and 1st rounds of mayoral elections) here in the state of Salzburg today.

In 119 cities and for a new 5 year term.

The first polls will open around 7am and close at noon in some smaller towns and then up until 5pm in bigger cities.

I‘m mostly interested in the results of my city (Zell am See) and that of the towns in the district + the results of the capital Salzburg City (155.000 people).

The weather is cold and mostly dry in the South and a bit warmer but rainy in the North.

A first trend should come in about 1 hour, when the first polls close at noon in some small towns - such as Krimml, a tourist magnet because of Europe's highest waterfalls and recovery spot for those with breath or lung disease like asthma.

http://www.wasserfaelle-krimml.at/en/be-amazed/natural-remedy

Result for mayor in Krimml:

67.6% (+8.5%) Erich Czerny (ÖVP-Inc.)
32.4%  (-8.5%) Johann Leutgeb (SPÖ)

ÖVP gains 3.7% in the city council to 57.9%

Turnout: 79.3%

[Tender Branson]

The FPÖ loses 11.2% in Weißpriach and therefore their relative majority in the city council there (down to 28.9%).

The ÖVP gains 10.5% to 47.4%, while the SPÖ gains 0.7% to 23.7%.

Turnout: 88.3% (+2.1%)

[Tender Branson]

First mayoral pickup ... for the ÖVP, in Muhr:

57.9% (+18.6%) Hans‑Jürgen Schiefer (ÖVP)
31.6% (-29.1%) Christian Kremser (SPÖ)
10.5% (+10.5%) Petra Krznar (FPÖ)

Turnout: 88.9%

The ÖVP is doing pretty well in the small towns so far ... could be a trend.

[Tender Branson]

Another 2 smaller towns in, one with moderate SPÖ-gains and another with big ÖVP-gains.

[Tender Branson]

Now some bigger towns/cities will close their polls.

But it should be obvious that the ÖVP is doing well, SPÖ and FPÖ not so much.

Greens, NEOS are only on the ballot in some of the big cities.

[Tender Branson]

Another mayoral pickup for the ÖVP in Mariapfarr, where Kaiser Andreas defeats Doppler Franz (SPÖ) by 57-36-7.

The SPÖ loses 24%, while the ÖVP gains 17% and the FPÖ 7%.

[Tender Branson]

With 16 (small towns) of 119 counted, the ÖVP gains 7%, SPÖ -5%, FPÖ -4% and Others +2%.

[Tender Branson]

The first big one has come in (Kuchl, with almost 6.000 eligible voters):

SPÖ +8%
ÖVP +4%
NEOS +2%

Greens: -11%
FPÖ: -3%

[Tender Branson]

The SPÖ wins a close one in Ramingstein:

51.8% Pagitsch Günther (SPÖ) +3.5%
48.2% Kocher Leonhard (ÖVP)  -3.5%

Turnout: 84.9% (+1.9%)

Pickup SPÖ from ÖVP.

[Tender Branson]

Here in Zell am See district, the SPÖ has gained a mayor from the ÖVP so far while the ÖVP gained one from the SPÖ.

Statewide, with 54/119 cities reporting, the ÖVP gained 3% in the combined municipal vote while the SPÖ, FPÖ and Greens lost 1% each.

[Tender Branson]

Christian Pewny (FPÖ) elected new mayor of Radstadt with 70% and 30% No-votes.

SPÖ and ÖVP didn't find a candidate to oppose him.

[Tender Branson]

Results for Zell am See City are in and surprisingly, this will head to a runoff:

46.2%  (-19.5%) Peter Padourek (ÖVP, incumbent)
40.8% (+11.7%) Andreas Wimmreuter (SPÖ)
13.0%   (+7.8%) Werner Hörl (Greens)

City council:

41.8% ÖVP (-10.5%)
39.9% SPÖ (+9.9%)
14.3% Greens (+5.0%)
  4.0% FPS (-4.4%)

Very interesting results compared with the statewide pro-ÖVP trend.

Huge results for SPÖ + Greens.

[Tender Branson]

It looks as if the ÖVP will get their best statewide municipal election result today since WW2, with ca. 46%, an increase of 3%.

The SPÖ will end up stable compared with 2014 and the FPÖ down 2% and the Greens down 1%.

It's very strange that the ÖVP never got more than 44.7% since WW2, despite Salzburg being a stronghold for them. But that probably has to do with the fact that the FPÖ used to be much stronger in the past, getting between 14-18% between WW2 and the 1990s. Now they are at just 10%.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

This is a thread dedicated to Austria. Please keep discussions about politics of other countries to their respective threads.

[Tender Branson]

This is a thread dedicated to Austria. Please keep discussions about politics of other countries to their respective threads.

I think Andi just accidentally copied it into the wrong thread ...

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

This is a thread dedicated to Austria. Please keep discussions about politics of other countries to their respective threads.

I think Andi just accidentally copied it into the wrong thread ...

Just trying to keep those pesky migrating posts from corrupting this Austrian thread.

[Omega21]

This is a thread dedicated to Austria. Please keep discussions about politics of other countries to their respective threads.

I think Andi just accidentally copied it into the wrong thread ...

Just trying to keep those pesky migrating posts from corrupting this Austrian thread.

A noble cause indeed!

[Tender Branson]

For the first time in over 50 years, the Communist Party has gained a seat in the Salzburg City Council.

They got almost 4% today, more than doubling their 2014 share.

[Tender Branson]

Final results of the Salzburg municipal elections (best result for the ÖVP since WW2):



SPÖ, FPÖ, Greens all down moderately - but the Greens also did really well in some areas.

There will be 11 mayoral runoffs in 2 weeks, for example in the capital and here in Zell am See.

[Tender Branson]

ÖVP/FPÖ have passed their welfare reform law today in their joint cabinet council meeting, as well as 4 Mio. € of direct aid to Syria, Jordan and Libya:

The Council of Ministers today adopted the new social welfare principle. With minimum income protection, the federal government is introducing a nationwide, more accurate and equitable social assistance system.

Helping people to help themselves - groups of people who are particularly worthy of protection are better off

At the press foyer after the Council of Ministers, the Federal Chancellor outlined the cornerstones of the minimum income protection reform together with Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache, Social Affairs Minister Beate Hartinger-Klein and VP-Club Chairman August Wöginger. "The minimum income is an important project that we have now successfully completed. The reform is urgently needed, as we have a massive immigration in our system. Since 2012, the number of recipients has increased sharply.

Therefore, we now have with the Social Welfare Law a package that provides for a fair and fair system of work incentives, "said the Chancellor. "Our goal is for the people who can contribute to do so and work and, on the other hand, we need a strong social system to support people who really need our help." Individual groups such as people with disabilities, and single parents are particularly worthy of protection, so they would receive more benefits.

"With the reform we want to reduce the incentives for immigration into the system who does not learn German and therefore can not integrate into the labor market does not get the full benefit." The reform creates an incentive to learn the German language " Sebastian Kurz emphasized. "We do not want people to be dependent, but to have as many as possible integrated into the labor market, to help those who can not help themselves, Christian-social is what makes people strong, not what is dependent and weak, "said the Chancellor.

Promote integration and work readiness

Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache emphasized the importance of forcing and supporting, above all, the German language skills of migrants. This is an essential prerequisite in the sense of a positive integration. "The willingness to work is the basic requirement for the receipt of benefits, the social assistance is granted for a maximum of 12 months, after which an application must be made again." The Vice Chancellor was particularly pleased that in the future, single parents will be granted a supplement of up to € 103.50 per child. Persons with disabilities receive a supplement of 155 euros per month. This must be paid by the countries obligatory. "Social assistance brings more fairness and justice, and additional social benefits, such as family allowances, are naturally preserved and make Austria a family-friendly country," said Strache.

Social Minister Beate Hartinger-Klein was pleased that the reform was finally carried out after decades of discussion. "The Social Welfare Principle Law brings fair, efficient and harmonized solutions.We do not want people to remain dependent but create a model through which they can live independently again and without state help." We create binding framework conditions through nationwide harmonization At the same time, however, we are giving the countries an enormous amount of freedom within this framework in their implementing legislation, "stated the Federal Minister. The law contains a number of optional provisions to allow countries the best possible regional implementation legislation. The core of the reform is that the full benefit only pays to those who are willing to contribute.

Hartinger-Klein also informed together with the Vice Chancellor about the fact that the full property access does not come. "The grace period for home ownership remains protected and untouched for 3 years." Klubobmann August Wöginger stated in his statement that the reform of social assistance is a flagship project of this government and should serve as a springboard back into the world of work.

Four million euros in emergency aid from the AKF

The Federal Chancellor also informed about the provision of four million euros from the Foreign Disaster Fund (AKF) for the needy people in Jordan, Libya and Syria. "We use the funds to help organizations like the Red Cross and UNHCR to help people on the ground and to create better living conditions through demining and clearance," says Sebastian Kurz.

https://orf.at/stories/3114977

[Tender Branson]

Funny, but not really surprising fact, about the Salzburg municipal elections on Sunday:

Turnout in many small towns ranged from 80% to 94%, even though they mostly close at noon already or at 1 or 2pm.

In the capital, Salzburg City, turnout was only 48% (the lowest among all cities), even though polls were open the longest, until 5pm ...

Lazy city people.

https://www.salzburg.gv.at/stat/wahlen/gvw/index2019.html#rang.5.0.0.1

[Tender Branson]

The Greens are the last party to choose their candidates for the EU elections this weekend and with Green Party leader Werner Kogler running for 1st on the list, the Greens will soon need a new party leader as well if Kogler is elected to the EU parliament. Kogler has said he will take the seat if elected.

Based on their recent election results and rising poll numbers, it is even possible that the Greens not only get 1, but 2 seats in the EU parliament (popular TV cook Sarah Wiener is running for the 2nd list spot).

So, if Kogler (who has done a good job in re-structuring the Austrian Greens after their defeat in 2017) is elected to the EU parliament, these are the most likely candidates for Green Party leader (and there will be a huge generational shift in this case because Kogler is 57):

Nina Tomaselli (Vorarlberg) & Stefan Kaineder (Upper Austria), both 33 years old, both are already MPs in their states and both are already deputy party leaders for Kogler at the federal level.

  

Kaineder is seen as a "rising star", because of his theology studies and focus on agriculture and food safety, which could attract conservative voters back to the Greens.

Tomaselli is more focused on the social topics like poverty prevention and women's issues. If she follows Kogler, all 4 opposition leaders in Austria would be female.

[Tender Branson]

This is a very Austrian political story:

Austria to introduce rules for hikers after cow-trampling death

The Austrian chancellor, Sebastian Kurz, has announced that the country will introduce a legally binding code of conduct for hikers who visit its picturesque mountain pastures in response to the death of a German tourist who was trampled by cows.

After the incident – which took place in Tyrol in 2014 – a court last month ordered the farmer who owned the cattle to pay 500.000 euros in damages to the 45-year-old victim’s family.

That caused outrage among farmers and consternation among the public, partly because the victim was walking her dog on a lead attached to her waist. Cows can charge to protect their calves when they see dogs, and hikers are advised to release their dogs in such cases, which she did not do.

“We will lay out clearly in the code of conduct what is expected of people who use mountain pastures,” Kurz told a news conference.

Kurz did not provide specifics but did suggest that dogs would be an important part of the new code, adding that problem cases have “almost exclusively” involved dogs.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/11/austria-to-introduce-rules-for-hikers-after-cow-trampling-death

[rob in cal]

  Tender, how do the various parties feel about their results in  the Salzburg area elections?

[Tender Branson]

 Tender, how do the various parties feel about their results in the Salzburg area elections?

ÖVP = very happy (best result since WW2), strengthened their already-dominant position
FPÖ = mixed, won a mayor, but only because ÖVP/SPÖ found no candidate, otherwise they lost
SPÖ = mixed, didn't mobilize in small towns and the capital Salzburg, but gained in other big cities
Greens = (very) happy, because they got respectable results and sometimes gained ground
KPÖ = very happy, gained a city council seat in the capital for the first time in 57 years
NEOS = neutral, because they didn't run in a lot of towns (municipals are not so important for them)