Kisses in Flachau – praise and blame for the black-blue cuddly toy trail

“Break up!” State Councilor Martin Zauner wanted to offer himself as a mediator on Tuesday afternoon, but it was not necessary at all. Zauner’s full attention at this point was on Karoline Edtstadler and Marlene Svazek. Both were clearly about to get closer to each other on the Flachau estate. The designated governor and current minister approached the Freedom Party table at the state reception. Cameras and journalists were already waiting. And then: kiss-bussi. Even Svazek, Edtstadler’s future deputy, was equally surprised.

Svazek: Kisses for ’empathyless’ Edtstadlers
In Flachau, Svazek stood for a few minutes next to Edtstadler, who once again pulled out her claws for the cameras and grinned. There was no trace of dislike or hatred towards each other during the country’s reception, which was hosted by Stefan Schnöll, the representative of the second future governor.

The day before, the Salzburg FPÖ leader had verbally attacked Edtstadler and the Salzburg ÖVP during a specially convened press conference. There is no friendly relationship between the two. She also testified to Edtstadler’s harshness, coldness and lack of empathy. The party committees that met on Sunday reluctantly gave their conditional yes to continued cooperation with the ÖVP. State Governor Wilfried Haslauer, who resigned in July, then praised the common sense of the FPÖ.

Night slalom is just a side issue
The Internet responded to photos and videos of the two politicians together as of Tuesday evening. There were hundreds of reactions to a ‘Krone’ article and countless other media reports. The real highlight, the women’s night slalom, became an afterthought on social media platforms.

‘Okay, if both speak politely to each other’
A Facebook user criticized Marlene Svazek’s behavior as “too nice, too warm, inappropriate for what was said.” A Freedom Council member from Lower Austria even whispered to his party colleague: “What were you thinking????”

There was also praise for the friendly approach between the Salzburg politicians. “You can think about both of them however you want, it’s okay if they both talk politely to each other,” one netizen concluded. The FPÖ leader criticized the media reporting in her own posts and in comments. Svazek voluntarily spoke into the microphones in Flachau and smiled into the cameras. Christian Pewny did the same. When asked by a television reporter whether Edtstadler and Svazek would still get together, the State Council for Social Affairs responded with a smile and yet only cautious optimism. “These are women. You can never tell what will happen next…”