Austria's far-right confident of election victory

For more than a year, Kickl's FPO party has maintained its lead thanks to a focus on immigration issues and voter dissatisfaction with inflation that is higher than the European Union average and Austria's economic situation that has not developed as expected.

Freedom Party (FPOe) leader Herbert Kickl attends their final election rally in Vienna, Austria, September 27, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

However, Chancellor Karl Nehammer's conservative Austrian People's Party (OVP) has narrowed the gap with the FPO thanks to Mr Nehammer's attempts to portray himself as a responsible leader, in contrast to Kickl's often controversial and divisive style.

“The people are the wind at our back, the system is the headwind, and the people are always stronger than the system, we will prove that on Sunday,” Kickl, 55, said at a rally in front of St. Stephen's Cathedral in central Vienna.

“We will be number one this time,” he stressed, recalling that it would be the first time in the history of the party, founded in the 1950s, that it had won a parliamentary election. The FPO had previously achieved its first national victory when it beat the OVP in the European elections in June by less than 1 percentage point.

Although the number of new immigrants has fallen sharply over the past year, Kickl has pledged to take tough measures to stop immigration into Austria, such as creating a "Fortress Austria" to push migrants back to the border and stopping granting asylum.

The FPO and OVP share similar views on immigration and economic issues such as tax cuts, but Nehammer has described Kickl as an extremist, stating that he is willing to form a coalition with the FPO but will not join a government if Kickl is a member of it.

Hong Hanh (according to Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/phe-cuc-huu-ao-tu-tin-gianh-chien-thang-trong-cuoc-bau-cu-vao-chu-nhat-post314314.html