Summary of the day
Preliminary results from Austria’s general election showed the far-right Freedom party (FPÖ) winning the most votes for the first time in the postwar period.
The party rode a tide of public anger over migration and the cost of living, and was projected to win 29% of the vote.
The centre-right Austrian People’s party (ÖVP) was projected to come in second place with 26.3%, while the Social Democratic party (SPÖ) was at 21%.
Because it failed to win an absolute majority, the FPÖ will need a partner to govern.
The ÖVP’s Karl Nehammer, Austria’s chancellor, has said that the FPÖ’s Herbert Kickl as chancellor would be a non-starter, setting up a potential showdown in which the FPÖ would have to either jettison Kickl or take a back seat in government to win the ÖVP’s support.
Far-right parties across Europe congratulated the FPÖ on its projected result.
Updated
Karl Nehammer said his party will stand by what it has promised before the election.
Wir haben gemeinsam gekämpft! Für Stabilität und die politische Mitte im Land. Die Volkspartei ist stärker, als viele es für möglich gehalten haben. Selbstverständlich stehen wir auch nach Wahl zu dem, was wir unseren Wählerinnen und Wählern davor versprochen haben. pic.twitter.com/6IjFYvq35g
— Karl Nehammer (@karlnehammer) September 29, 2024
