On the last day of the candidate support phase for the federal presidential election, incumbent Alexander Van der Bellen submitted about 25,000 statements. The 78-year-old economist did not make the presentation at the Ministry of the Interior, but in front of his office at Ballhausplatz. “Life is too short to take ugly pictures,” he explained to journalists about the choice of location, because there is currently a construction site at the electoral authority. Van der Bellen is the most promising Hofburg aspirant. His goal was to achieve an absolute majority in the first ballot.
Van der Bellen thanked everyone who took the trouble to sign for him. “That’s very nice,” he said, “so the election campaign starts next week.” The head of state cited experience, independence and stability as his strengths and tried to mobilize voters. “It’s not a mowed Wies’n”, he warned, the success will depend a lot on the turnout.
“I hate the word political duel”
He again stated that he would not engage in TV discussions with his opponents. “No, the word political duel already bothers me,” he said when asked a question. He and his supporters then unloaded the letters of support for the photographers and cameramen, then loaded them back into the campaign bus for delivery.
Candidates for the October 9 federal presidential election must submit their candidacy to the Federal Electoral Authority by today, 5 p.m. Friday. To be valid, the proposal must be accompanied by at least 6,000 statements of support and a cost contribution of 3,600 euros. Most candidates have already signed.
Who else made it
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 – more than 9,000, he announced Thursday afternoon. He will present them to the Electoral Council on Friday afternoon. The candidacy has already been submitted by Beer Party founder Dominik Wlazny (just over 6,000 signatures), former FPÖ and BZÖ politician and current blogger Gerald Grosz (over 9,000), FPÖ nominated ombudsman Walter Rosenkranz (18,500), MFG chief Michael Brunner (about 15,000) and lawyer and ex-Krone columnist Tassilo Wallentin signed 18,000.
Source: Krone
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