Will Mozart’s city be governed again in the future by social democrats or by “danklrot”? With the SPÖ and the KPÖ, the two left-of-center parties won the second election on March 24.
The super election year started in Salzburg – and at least in the capital – with a real bang. The communist Kay-Michael Dankl achieved more than just a respectable success and made it to the second round (see image below).
There he has to duel the following Sunday with SPÖ candidate Bernhard Auinger, who was ahead (subject to postal votes).
The exciting election Sunday to read.
Black evening for the ÖVP
However, it was a dark evening for the ÖVP. The 2019 elections benefited from the turquoise peak under then Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. Now the coveted mayor’s seat was lost again, but at least part of the ‘power in the country’ was retained. For example, the ÖVP was able to assert itself as the mayor’s party in Radstadt and Kuchl.
The SPÖ was not only successful in Mozart’s city, but also performed well in other cities such as Hallein and Zell am See. All this without the intervention of SPÖ leader Andreas Babler, who was in Hamburg, spoke at the SPD party congress on Saturday and attended a football match on Sunday.
But he wants to go to the second election. And the outcome of this red-red mayoral duel is completely open, as political professor Peter Filzmaier notes.
Memories of the presidential elections
“These are new elections. I remember the 2016 presidential elections. Norbert Hofer of the FPÖ was 14 percent ahead in the first gear, but Alexander Van der Bellen won. In the second round, the same voters will not go and the same people will not stay away from the polls. Many have to make a second choice because their first one is no longer eligible.”
Therefore, no prediction is possible and the choice is open. It is also impossible to draw conclusions about federal policy. The city’s voters make up 1.7 percent; those of the state make up seven percent of all voters in Austria.
“For the KPÖ it is self-evident”
According to Filzmaier, the results are “at most motivating within the party”. For the KPÖ it is “point-to-point”. “The communists have achieved results of more than 20 percent in Graz since 2003, but have never entered the National Council. They have no driving force nationally.”
Theoretically, the KPÖ could hope to gain access to Graz or Salzburg through a basic mandate. But it’s not just the city that counts here, but also the surroundings – and that makes it difficult.
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.
