Austrian presidential election, 2010
Encyclopedia
The Austrian
presidential election
took place on 25 April 2010. It was the twelfth election of an Austrian head of state since 1951. The candidates were Heinz Fischer
, Barbara Rosenkranz
(FPÖ
) and Rudolf Gehring (CPÖ). Heinz Fischer won with just under 80% of the valid votes. The turnout was on the historic low of about 54%.
Social Democratic Party of Austria
Incumbent President Heinz Fischer
(independent
, former member of the Social Democratic Party
) announced on 23 November 2009 that he will seek a second term. According to a June 27, 2009, Gallup poll for the newspaper Österreich
, Fischer had a job approval rating of 80%.
Austrian People's Party
There were rumours that the candidate of the Austrian People's Party
would be either Governor of Lower Austria
Erwin Pröll
or president of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber
Christoph Leitl. On 13 October 2009 Pröll announced that he would not run for the Presidency and that he would remain Governor of Lower Austria. Leitl and former governor of Styria Waltraud Klasnic also declined a presidential run. On 25 February 2010, the People's Party announced that it would not nominate a candidate, and would not officially support any candidate.
Freedom Party of Austria
The Freedom Party
announced in June 2009 that it would definitely field a candidate "to prevent Fischer['s reelection]". Possible candidates mentioned included Martin Graf
, Norbert Steger
, Siegfried Dillersberger, Norbert Gugerbauer, Dieter Böhmdorfer and Wilhelm Brauneder. After the Carinthian branch of the Alliance for the Future of Austria
broke away to re-unite with the Freedom Party, it was rumoured that Barbara Rosenkranz
would be their candidate. In early January 2010, Heinz-Christian Strache
, leader of the Freedom Party, guaranteed that the party would nominate a candidate to assure that Fischer would not run unopposed. On 28 February 2010, Strache announced in the Kronen Zeitung
that the Freedom Party would nominate Barbara Rosenkranz as its presidential candidate.
Alliance for the Future of Austria
Alliance for the Future of Austria
leader Josef Bucher
and General Secretary Stefan Petzner
voiced their support for a presidential candidacy of Claudia Haider, widow of former Aliance leader Jörg Haider
, by inviting the Greens and the Freedom Party to form a non-partisan committee. Carinthia
Governor Gerhard Dörfler
spoke out against such a candidacy, because he "wouldn't like to join forces with Heinz-Christian Strache's [Freedom Party]", but nonetheless said that Claudia Haider would be a "good candidate, who could finance her campaign on her own". On August 17, Haider announced that she would not run for President. On 26 February 2010, Bucher said that he might run as a candidate for his party, because "he could appeal to [People's Party] voters". On 1 March 2010, the Alliance announced that Bucher would not stand as a candidate, as the odds were clearly against him and they did not want to waste taxpayers' money.
might stand in the election, but he stated in January 2009 that if Fischer ran for reelection he would have his support. In June 2009, however, Green party leader Eva Glawischnig
stated that the Greens were considering fielding a candidate, and that Van der Bellen would be a very good candidate. By November 2009, there was still no clear decision from the Greens, even though Van der Bellen had ruled out a run for the Presidency on 23 November 2009. On 25 February 2010, the Greens announced they wanted to concentrate on state elections and would not nominate a candidate. After Fischer appeared at an event where the Greens questioned him on a number of issues, with questions submitted by voters via the internet, the Greens on 12 April 2010 officially endorsed his candidacy and called for their voters to vote for him, a first in the party's history.
, Martin Wabl, who had twice previously tried to run for president, announced on 6 February 2009 that he would run again. Green municipal councillor Ulrich Habsburg-Lothringen, as a descendant of the former ruling house of Austria–Hungary incapacitated by constitutional law to run for Austria's presidency, stated that he wanted to test the law at Austria's constitutional court if his candidacy is not permitted. Bernhard Gregor Honemann (nominated by the platform agenda2020.at) also planned to run. None of these candidates obtained the 6000 signatures necessary to run for president. The signatures submitted were:
Total number of eligible voters by state:
Opinion polls had placed Fischer in a good position on the day of the election.
Fischer thanked the nation on television: "I am extremely happy and thank the Austrian population for having so much confidence in me".
Poor voter turnout - only 53.6% voted - led again to calls by leaders for the post to be abolished.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
presidential election
Presidential election
A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is president.- United States :The United States has elections on the state and local levels...
took place on 25 April 2010. It was the twelfth election of an Austrian head of state since 1951. The candidates were Heinz Fischer
Heinz Fischer
Heinz Fischer GColIH is the President of Austria. He took office on 8 July 2004 and was re-elected for a second and last term on 25 April 2010. Before he took office, Fischer was a member of the Social Democratic Party of Austria...
, Barbara Rosenkranz
Barbara Rosenkranz
Barbara Rosenkranz is an Austrian politician for the Freedom Party of Austria , currently serving as the Minister of Building Law and Animal Protection of the State of Lower Austria...
(FPÖ
Freedom Party of Austria
The Freedom Party of Austria is a political party in Austria. Ideologically, the party is a direct descendant of the German national liberal camp, which dates back to the 1848 revolutions. The FPÖ itself was founded in 1956 as the successor to the short-lived Federation of Independents , which had...
) and Rudolf Gehring (CPÖ). Heinz Fischer won with just under 80% of the valid votes. The turnout was on the historic low of about 54%.
Social Democratic Party of AustriaSocial Democratic Party of AustriaThe Social Democratic Party of Austria is one of the oldest political parties in Austria. The SPÖ is one of the two major parties in Austria, and has ties to trade unions and the Austrian Chamber of Labour. The SPÖ is among the few mainstream European social-democratic parties that have preserved...
Incumbent President Heinz FischerHeinz Fischer
Heinz Fischer GColIH is the President of Austria. He took office on 8 July 2004 and was re-elected for a second and last term on 25 April 2010. Before he took office, Fischer was a member of the Social Democratic Party of Austria...
(independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
, former member of the Social Democratic Party
Social Democratic Party of Austria
The Social Democratic Party of Austria is one of the oldest political parties in Austria. The SPÖ is one of the two major parties in Austria, and has ties to trade unions and the Austrian Chamber of Labour. The SPÖ is among the few mainstream European social-democratic parties that have preserved...
) announced on 23 November 2009 that he will seek a second term. According to a June 27, 2009, Gallup poll for the newspaper Österreich
Österreich (newspaper)
Österreich is a national daily Austrian newspaper....
, Fischer had a job approval rating of 80%.
Austrian People's PartyAustrian People's PartyThe Austrian People's Party is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Austria. A successor to the Christian Social Party of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it is similar to the Christian Democratic Union of Germany in terms of ideology...
There were rumours that the candidate of the Austrian People's PartyAustrian People's Party
The Austrian People's Party is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Austria. A successor to the Christian Social Party of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it is similar to the Christian Democratic Union of Germany in terms of ideology...
would be either Governor of Lower Austria
Lower Austria
Lower Austria is the northeasternmost state of the nine states in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not officially part of Lower Austria...
Erwin Pröll
Erwin Pröll
Erwin Pröll is an Austrian politician of the Austrian People's Party . Since 22 October 1992 he has been governor of Lower Austria...
or president of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber
Austrian Federal Economic Chamber
The Austrian Federal Economic Chamber coordinates and represents the interests of the Austrian business community on a national and international level...
Christoph Leitl. On 13 October 2009 Pröll announced that he would not run for the Presidency and that he would remain Governor of Lower Austria. Leitl and former governor of Styria Waltraud Klasnic also declined a presidential run. On 25 February 2010, the People's Party announced that it would not nominate a candidate, and would not officially support any candidate.
Freedom Party of AustriaFreedom Party of AustriaThe Freedom Party of Austria is a political party in Austria. Ideologically, the party is a direct descendant of the German national liberal camp, which dates back to the 1848 revolutions. The FPÖ itself was founded in 1956 as the successor to the short-lived Federation of Independents , which had...
The Freedom PartyFreedom Party of Austria
The Freedom Party of Austria is a political party in Austria. Ideologically, the party is a direct descendant of the German national liberal camp, which dates back to the 1848 revolutions. The FPÖ itself was founded in 1956 as the successor to the short-lived Federation of Independents , which had...
announced in June 2009 that it would definitely field a candidate "to prevent Fischer['s reelection]". Possible candidates mentioned included Martin Graf
Martin Graf
Martin Graf is an Austrian politician. He is member of the Freedom Party of Austria and currently third president of the Austrian Parliament.- Biography :...
, Norbert Steger
Norbert Steger
Norbert Steger is an Austrian lawyer and former politician for the Freedom Party of Austria . He was the FPÖ party leader from 1980 to 1986, and Vice Chancellor and Minister of Commerce of Austria from 1983 to 1987....
, Siegfried Dillersberger, Norbert Gugerbauer, Dieter Böhmdorfer and Wilhelm Brauneder. After the Carinthian branch of the Alliance for the Future of Austria
Alliance for the Future of Austria
The Alliance for the Future of Austria , abbreviated to BZÖ, is a conservative liberal political party in Austria. The party has sixteen seats in the National Council....
broke away to re-unite with the Freedom Party, it was rumoured that Barbara Rosenkranz
Barbara Rosenkranz
Barbara Rosenkranz is an Austrian politician for the Freedom Party of Austria , currently serving as the Minister of Building Law and Animal Protection of the State of Lower Austria...
would be their candidate. In early January 2010, Heinz-Christian Strache
Heinz-Christian Strache
Heinz-Christian Strache is an Austrian politician, member of parliament, former member of the Vienna city council and political leader of the Freedom Party of Austria . He is a right-wing politician and an efficient populist...
, leader of the Freedom Party, guaranteed that the party would nominate a candidate to assure that Fischer would not run unopposed. On 28 February 2010, Strache announced in the Kronen Zeitung
Kronen Zeitung
The Kronen Zeitung, commonly known as the Krone, is Austria's largest newspaper. According to a Österreichische Media-Analyse study, the average daily readership is 2,970,000 , which corresponds to 43,7% of all newspaper readers...
that the Freedom Party would nominate Barbara Rosenkranz as its presidential candidate.
Alliance for the Future of AustriaAlliance for the Future of AustriaThe Alliance for the Future of Austria , abbreviated to BZÖ, is a conservative liberal political party in Austria. The party has sixteen seats in the National Council....
Alliance for the Future of AustriaAlliance for the Future of Austria
The Alliance for the Future of Austria , abbreviated to BZÖ, is a conservative liberal political party in Austria. The party has sixteen seats in the National Council....
leader Josef Bucher
Josef Bucher
Josef Bucher is an Austrian politician and is the leader of the Alliance for the Future of Austria . He is also a Member of Parliament for the party...
and General Secretary Stefan Petzner
Stefan Petzner
Stefan Petzner is an Austrian politician. He is a member of the economical right Alliance for the Future of Austria ...
voiced their support for a presidential candidacy of Claudia Haider, widow of former Aliance leader Jörg Haider
Jörg Haider
Jörg Haider was an Austrian politician. He was Governor of Carinthia on two occasions, the long-time leader of the Austrian Freedom Party and later Chairman of the Alliance for the Future of Austria , a breakaway party from the FPÖ.Haider was controversial within Austria and abroad for comments...
, by inviting the Greens and the Freedom Party to form a non-partisan committee. Carinthia
Carinthia (state)
Carinthia is the southernmost Austrian state or Land. Situated within the Eastern Alps it is chiefly noted for its mountains and lakes.The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Austro-Bavarian group...
Governor Gerhard Dörfler
Gerhard Dörfler
Gerhard Dörfler is an Austrian politician, who is currently serving as Governor of Carinthia from October 27, 2008 , following Governor Jörg Haider's sudden death in a car accident....
spoke out against such a candidacy, because he "wouldn't like to join forces with Heinz-Christian Strache's [Freedom Party]", but nonetheless said that Claudia Haider would be a "good candidate, who could finance her campaign on her own". On August 17, Haider announced that she would not run for President. On 26 February 2010, Bucher said that he might run as a candidate for his party, because "he could appeal to [People's Party] voters". On 1 March 2010, the Alliance announced that Bucher would not stand as a candidate, as the odds were clearly against him and they did not want to waste taxpayers' money.
The Greens – The Green Alternative
It was expected that former Green Party leader Alexander Van der BellenAlexander Van der Bellen
Alexander Van der Bellen is an Austrian economist and politician, chairman of the parliamentary club and federal spokesperson of the Austrian Green Party from 1997 to 2008....
might stand in the election, but he stated in January 2009 that if Fischer ran for reelection he would have his support. In June 2009, however, Green party leader Eva Glawischnig
Eva Glawischnig
Eva Glawischnig-Piesczek is an Austrian politician of the Austrian Green Party and its federal spokeswoman....
stated that the Greens were considering fielding a candidate, and that Van der Bellen would be a very good candidate. By November 2009, there was still no clear decision from the Greens, even though Van der Bellen had ruled out a run for the Presidency on 23 November 2009. On 25 February 2010, the Greens announced they wanted to concentrate on state elections and would not nominate a candidate. After Fischer appeared at an event where the Greens questioned him on a number of issues, with questions submitted by voters via the internet, the Greens on 12 April 2010 officially endorsed his candidacy and called for their voters to vote for him, a first in the party's history.
Christian Party of Austria
The Christian Party nominated its chairman Rudolf Gehring as a presidential candidate. On 25 March 2010, they announced they had gathered the necessary number signatures to run for president.Other candidates
A former judge from eastern StyriaStyria (state)
Styria is a state or Bundesland, located in the southeast of Austria. In area it is the second largest of the nine Austrian federated states, covering 16,401 km². It borders Slovenia as well as the other Austrian states of Upper Austria, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Burgenland, and Carinthia. ...
, Martin Wabl, who had twice previously tried to run for president, announced on 6 February 2009 that he would run again. Green municipal councillor Ulrich Habsburg-Lothringen, as a descendant of the former ruling house of Austria–Hungary incapacitated by constitutional law to run for Austria's presidency, stated that he wanted to test the law at Austria's constitutional court if his candidacy is not permitted. Bernhard Gregor Honemann (nominated by the platform agenda2020.at) also planned to run. None of these candidates obtained the 6000 signatures necessary to run for president. The signatures submitted were:
- Fischer: 45,000 signatures
- Rosenkranz: 10,500 signatures
- Gehring: 8,000 signatures
Voter statistics
According to the federal election commission, 6,355,800 Austrian citizens aged 16+ were eligible to vote in the presidential election. Compared with the 2004 presidential election, the number of eligible voters increased by 324,818, or 5.4% – primarily due to lowering the legal voting age to 16 between the two elections. 3,307,366 women and 3,048,434 men were eligible to vote.Total number of eligible voters by state:
- Burgenland: 231,257
- Carinthia: 447,679
- Lower Austria: 1,267,379
- Upper Austria: 1,092,760
- Salzburg: 391,142
- Styria: 973,009
- Tyrol: 530,265
- Vorarlberg: 265,026
- Vienna: 1,157,283
Results
Heinz Fischer beat Barbara Rosenkranz by scoring 79.3% of the vote. Rosenkranz received 15.2%. Rudolf Gehring came third by scoring 5.4%.Opinion polls had placed Fischer in a good position on the day of the election.
Fischer thanked the nation on television: "I am extremely happy and thank the Austrian population for having so much confidence in me".
Poor voter turnout - only 53.6% voted - led again to calls by leaders for the post to be abolished.
Social Democrats v. Freedom Party v. Christian Party
| Source | Date | Social Democrats | Freedom Party | Christian Party | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Karmasin/Profil | 17 April 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 82% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 13% | Rudolf Gehring – 5% | — |
| Market/Standard | 16 April 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 60% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 15% | Rudolf Gehring – 4% | 21% |
| Gallup/Österreich | 16 April 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 80% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 16% | Rudolf Gehring – 4% | — |
| Gallup/Österreich | 9 April 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 82% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 14% | Rudolf Gehring – 4% | — |
| Karmasin/Profil | 9 April 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 82% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 12% | Rudolf Gehring – 6% | — |
| Market/Standard | 1 April 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 71% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 13% | Rudolf Gehring – 2% | 14% |
Social Democrats v. Freedom Party
| Source | Date | Social Democrats | Freedom Party | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peter Hajek/ATV | 31 March 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 80% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 13% | 7% |
| Gallup/Österreich | 27 March 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 86% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 14% | — |
| OGM/News | 17 March 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 81% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 19% | — |
| Gallup/Österreich | 12 March 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 84% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 16% | — |
| Market/Standard | 5 March 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 65% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 17% | 18% |
| OGM/News | 3 March 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 74% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 26% | — |
| Gallup/Österreich | 27 February 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 79% | Barbara Rosenkranz – 21% | — |
| Gallup/Österreich | 27 February 2010 | Heinz Fischer – 84% | Heinz-Christian Strache – 16% | — |
Social Democrats v. People's Party
| Source | Date | Social Democrats | People's Party | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IMAS/Kronen Zeitung | 28 June 2009 | Heinz Fischer – 62% | Erwin Pröll – 20% | 18% |
| Gallup/Österreich | 27 June 2009 | Heinz Fischer – 62% | Erwin Pröll – 25% | 13% |
| OGM/News | 25 June 2009 | Heinz Fischer – 53% | Erwin Pröll – 30% | 17% |
| Market/Standard | 25 June 2009 | Heinz Fischer – 54% | Erwin Pröll – 30% | 16% |
| Gallup/Österreich | 4 April 2009 | Heinz Fischer – 67% | Erwin Pröll – 18% | 15% |
All parties
| Source | Date | Social Democrats | People's Party | Freedom Party | Greens | Alliance | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gallup/Österreich | 9 August 2009 | Heinz Fischer – 50% | Erwin Pröll – 24% | Martin Graf – 3% | Alexander Van der Bellen – 8% | Claudia Haider – 4% | 11% |
| Gallup/Österreich | 27 June 2009 | Heinz Fischer – 51% | Erwin Pröll – 17% | Heinz-Christian Strache – 8% | Alexander Van der Bellen – 9% | Claudia Haider – 5% | 10% |
External links
- Heinz Fischer Campaign Website
- Barbara Rosenkranz Campaign Website
- Rudolf Gehring Campaign Website
- NSD: European Election Database - Austria publishes regional level election data (NUTS 1-3); allows for comparisons of election results, 1992-2010