Elections in times of uncertainty

Elections in times of uncertainty What more important decisions have recently been taken in Brussels in favor of Salzburg?

Or what great things did the Chancellor and his coalition come up with for Salzburg?

And what exactly has the Salzburg state government done for us since the elections a year ago?

So perhaps today’s elections are more important for Salzburg than the state elections.

Nowadays, every vote counts for mayors and municipal councils. It is about a question that concerns everyone in Salzburg: who will take care of our Salzburg?

We live in villages, in communities, in cities that are not isolated from the world. No one with a sense of responsibility can pretend that the world outside is none of our business. The dream image of an intact world structure in Salzburg, cultivated by state politicians, has worked for a long time. This time is over.

The mountains, the lakes, the forests, the baroque city, the splendor of the festival: all the splendor can no longer hide the fact that the world has become a different place.

The pandemic has ended the illusion of safety. We have experienced troubled politicians. We heard seditious politicians. That has left deep marks.

And as soon as the pandemic subsided, Russia started a war on the edges of Europe. A memorable campaign for us too: inflation, rising prices, concerns about energy supplies, fear of expansion. Germany, which is closely linked to Austrian prosperity, is suffering economically. The Chinese are not quietly entering the European car market at all. The digital giants are destroying our lifestyle. The news about climate change robs us of the last certainties.

In addition, there are the eternal debates about the difficult-to-resolve issues of refugee flows. The fact that miles of fences have been built around border states across Europe, at a cost of hundreds of millions of euros, has hardly changed anything.

Often you just want to escape the endless storm of bad news to a mountain meadow in Pongau, Pinzgau or Lungau.

As if that wasn’t enough, war broke out in the Middle East after an elusive Hamas massacre in Israel. What will happen in the world if Donald Trump wins the US elections in November?

And what is happening in Austria in the meantime?

In Austria, as if there is nothing else to do, almost everything revolves around corruption cases, legal proceedings, chatter and a government in Vienna that is tired of making ends meet.

What does this have to do with Salzburg and the elections?

A lot.

The shocks do something to us. It becomes increasingly difficult to escape irritation.

Even though we would like things to be different, many things can no longer continue as before, because very few are the same as before.

This is how Salzburg votes today in uncertain times. The mayors are taking on a burden like rarely before. You have to be there for everyone. They must intervene where other forces fail.