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The recording of the panel discussion titled “Austria Votes: Will the Cordon Sanitaire Hold?” organized on October 1, 2024, is now available on AUTHLIB’s YouTube channel.

Austria is approaching a pivotal moment as it holds on September 29 possibly its most consequential federal elections in decades—for the country and for European politics. The radical-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), twice a junior partner in coalition governments in the past two decades, is leading in the polls and aiming for the chancellor’s office.

What social, economic, and political shifts have led to this troubling scenario for Austria and Europe? Will the conservative Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) agree to be the crucial coalition partner for the FPÖ, or will it opt instead for a centrist-progressive alliance even if this may cost it politically in the long run? Might Vienna set a new direction in EU party politics with a right-wing government consisting of members of the European People’s Party and Patriots for Europe groups, under the leadership of the latter? Could these elections signal the beginning of democratic backsliding in Austria? Finally, how might EU support for Ukraine be affected if the pro-Russian FPÖ comes to power?

Our panelists explored these critical questions, shedding light on the domestic and European ramifications of Austria’s elections, and on what their result could mean for the continent’s political landscape in the years to come.

Speakers:

  • Reinhard C. Heinisch, Professor, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg
  • Marcus How, Head of Analysis, VE Insight
  • Sylvia Kritzinger, Professor, University of Vienna

Chair:

  • Dániel Hegedűs, Regional Director for Central Europe, The German Marshall Fund of the United States
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