Renewed encouragement – SP party conference in Lower Austria: 89% voted for Schnabl

The 43rd SPÖ conference of the state party in the Multiverse Schwechat opened with a lively interlude by “The Ridin Dudes”. At about 10:15 a.m., state party chairman Franz Schnabl entered the ballroom to ovations from his colleagues. 333 of the 393 invited delegates and a total of 1200 guests made the pilgrimage to Schwechat to follow the party conference.

Of the 333 delegate votes, 329 exercised their right to vote: 89 percent voted for Schnabl as chairman of the state party. “Let’s not wait for a better future, let’s create it!” said the SP-NÖ boss.

In the official speech of the re-elected Franz Schnabl, he emphasized the high inflation that Austria has under control: “We are facing a hurricane and we know it is headed towards this country.”

“Better for the country. That’s how we are”, was the motto at the party congress. Schnabl wants to help Lower Austria forward, make it more modern, more open, more democratic and more humane. Whether the state elections take place on January 29 or later, the SPÖ will shake up the state elections and shake St. Pölten, Schnabl said in his speech. This shock will be felt as far as Vienna. Now there would be the historic opportunity to “drive the federal government and the absolute majority in the country to hell”:

According to Schnabl, the SPÖ is pursuing a policy of hope. Freedom, equality and solidarity are the goals of the Social Democratic Party. Stopping inflation is “a question of equality”. People wanted work that they could make a living from.

SPÖ federal party leader Pamela Rendi-Wagner could not be there from the start, she was earlier at the state party conference in Upper Austria and joined after the lunch break. In addition to inflation in Austria and the war in Ukraine, she also discussed the corona pandemic. The SPÖ saw such crises as a mandate and responsibility to solve these challenges. “The current federal government does not pass this test,” criticized Rendi-Wagner.

Drive away “Black Stuff”.
The two state directors Wolfgang Kocevar and Klaus Seltenheim criticized the ÖVP regarding the upcoming state elections: “The ÖVP will not give up without a fight, will not play fair and will do everything possible to distract from the allegations of corruption and scandals. “said Kocevar. You have to see that the SPÖ is concentrating on its business. It is not about conducting a better election campaign, but about breaking with the ÖVP system to move the country forward. Seltenheim confirms: “Unity is the key. If others want to divide, unity must be our strength.” The SPÖ wants to dispel the “black distress” in the mansion and let a breath of fresh air blow.

Lower Austria’s health minister, Ulrike Königsberger-Ludwig, spoke out about the “ten-point program” against the shortage of panel doctors. All people should receive the same care. It’s about shaping politics together with people and actually listening, says Königsberger-Ludwig.

Instead of an election card you brought out an app
The state party conference was increasingly paperless. For example, the “check-in” took place via the SPÖ app and voting was also done via QR code on the smartphone.

In 2017, Schnabl was re-elected 98.8 percent by his own party as SPÖ state party chairman, 15 months later he managed to convince 86 percent of the deputies in the re-election. He received 89 percent approval in today’s election. Schnabl was the only candidate.

“NÖN” poll for the 2023 state elections
According to a survey by the “Lower Austrian News” (“NÖN”), the Lower Austrian Social Democrats would achieve 25 percent in the state elections in 2023 – in 2018 they had reached 23 percent. The relevance index, which was conducted for the first time, asked who should continue to play a more or even more important role in Lower Austria in the future. Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) is in first place with 32 percent, Franz Schnabl would take 18 percent according to the survey and would thus finish in second place.