“Small majority” – Insider: VP state governors want to vote earlier

The ÖVP power circle met in the chancellery on Sunday evening. Chancellor Karl Nehammer met with the state governors of the ÖVP. Despite Nehammer’s public assurances that he wanted to stick to the autumn election date, there was intense debate about the right time.

“Small majority” in previous elections
Some meeting participants reported that a slim majority of state governors were in favor of an early election date.

State leaders could not agree: some favored a super election Sunday – i.e. a combination of the National Council and the EU elections – while others preferred a date before the EU elections on 9 June.

One person who campaigned very strongly to keep the election date in the fall was the governor of Styria, Christopher Drexler. “He doesn’t want a new government to take office when Styria votes in late autumn,” said one participant at the meeting.

One hears from the ÖVP Lower Austria that they would welcome an early step. During the meeting in the chancellery, Johanna Mikl-Leitner allegedly did not indicate any direction. She said she supported every decision.

Nehammer “has scenarios”
The hope of those pushing to make cases: Nehammer’s January 26 keynote speech could provide a boost in the polls, but this won’t last until September. What date was Nehammer leaning towards? “He has scenarios on his menu,” said one participant in the meeting.

However, you shouldn’t take too long to make the decision. If a date before the EU elections is actually sought, this should be made official in early February, as Austrian law stipulates a three-month deadline for announcing elections.