All nominations for the upcoming federal presidential election must be submitted by 5 p.m. Friday — this means candidates must submit at least 6,000 statements of support to the federal electoral authority by then. Most candidates have already signed. Incumbent Alexander Van der Bellen will do the same on Friday morning.
The former Greens leader is the only one of the promising Hofburg aspirants who has not yet commented on the number of statements of support collected. There is no doubt that the president has easily crossed the 6,000 signature threshold.
The 78-year-old economist will announce exactly how many voters support his candidacy when handing over the signatures to the electoral authorities on Friday.
Six candidates have already delivered
According to their own statements, a further six candidates have made it through the hurdle and the ballot paper with seven candidates should be longer than ever. Most recently, the “Waldviertler” shoe manufacturer Heinrich Staudinger reported that he had enough signatures – he announced more than 9,000 on Thursday afternoon. He will present them to the Electoral Council on Friday afternoon.
Beer party founder Dominik Wlazny (just over 6,000 signatures), former FPÖ and BZÖ politician and current blogger Gerald Grosz (over 9,000), Ombudsman nominated by the FPÖ, Walter Rosenkranz (18,500), MFG have already submitted their candidacy, boss Michael Brunner (about 15,000) and the lawyer and ex-Krone columnist Tassilo Wallentin (18,000 signatures filed).
Electoral Authority Counts
On Friday and Saturday, the statements of support are checked and counted by the electoral authority. Candidates who have too little can apply for a grace period until Tuesday. The competent authority will decide on Saturday evening whether this will be granted. Numerous individuals and representatives of smaller initiatives have also tried to get on the ballot – none of them are likely to make it.
Source: Krone
I’m an experienced news author and editor based in New York City. I specialize in covering healthcare news stories for Today Times Live, helping to keep readers informed on the latest developments related to the industry. I have a deep understanding of medical topics, including emerging treatments and drugs, the changing laws that regulate healthcare providers, and other matters that affect public health.
