The rifts in the SPÖ are still deep and this was especially apparent during the meetings of the party organs on Tuesday. Because the tone of voice there should have been pretty rough. Andreas Babler, Hans Peter Doskosil’s challenger at the upcoming party conference, pushed for unity on Wednesday night. But that seems to be totally missing from the Reds at the moment…
Babeler had received the second most votes in the member poll, just behind Doskozil. Why didn’t he just accept his defeat? “I always said it needs clarity in social democracy and we don’t have that at the moment,” Babler said in “ZiB2” on Wednesday night. The result of the member survey would all be “in a very narrow range.” from the class representative to the Federal President, must always bring clarity.”
“Not for backroom politics”
Now, on June 3, the 609 deputies will decide who should lead the SPÖ into the future and thus probably into the next national elections. Or not? It was rumored that Babler would make an offer to Doskozil to take over the mayor of Traiskirch as party chairman and that Doskozil would run for office in the next election. That is not true, Babler said, nor was he “for this backroom policy”, he explained, referring to the SPÖ committee meetings on Tuesday. A Team Doskozi insider simply described them as “evil”, with Doskozi even offering to back off at times.
Things have calmed down a bit now, at least outwardly. Babler says he is confident “that he can also achieve a good result at the party congress”. The main difference between him and Doskozil is that he is “very consistent” in the interpretation of his program. For example, higher wages in coordination with the unions or a quota for women in companies are clearly on the agenda for him.
“We have to ask ourselves how the FPÖ can be defeated”
In addition, one has to wonder “how the FPÖ can be defeated”, explains Babler. When asked about his statement in an interview with Puls24 that he was a Marxist, Babeler revised: “My The program is deeply rooted in social democracy. Marxism was formative in my youth organization years.” In any case, today he is “no longer a Marxist” in a radical interpretation.
The divided party wants to reconcile Babler, he has already “outlined a process of unification”, he insists. Because in the future it will be about “mwith enthusiasm and unity to win elections again”. For this he will probably not only have to convince the supporters in the Doskozi camp.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
