The alarming comeback of Austria’s far-right Freedom Party
And the rise of Herbert Kickl
A spectre is haunting Austria—the prospect of a government led by Herbert Kickl, boss of the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ). According to a poll on March 11th for Profil, a weekly, the FPÖ is now comfortably the strongest party in the Alpine republic, with 31% of the vote, followed by the Socialists (SPÖ) at 25% and the centre-right Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) with 22%. If Austrians could vote directly for their chancellor, the poll showed it would be a tie between Mr Kickl and the ÖVP’s Karl Nehammer, the incumbent.
This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Kanzler Kickl?”
Europe March 18th 2023
- Germany is at last tackling its long-standing economic weaknesses
- The alarming comeback of Austria’s far-right Freedom Party
- Ethnic Hungarians have been having a tricky time in Ukraine
- How Ukraine tamed Russian missile barrages and kept the lights on
- Europe has led the global charge against big tech. But does it need a new approach?
Discover more
Ursula von der Leyen has a new doctrine for handling the hard right
The boss of the European Commission embarks on a second term
Marine Le Pen spooks the bond markets
She threatens to bring down the French government, but also faces a possible ban from politics
The maths of Europe’s military black hole
It needs to spend to defend, but voters may balk
Ukraine’s warriors brace for a Kremlin surge in the south
Vladimir Putin’s war machine is pushing harder and crushing Ukrainian morale
Vladimir Putin fires a new missile to amplify his nuclear threats
The attack on Ukraine is part of a new era of missile warfare
A rise in antisemitism puts Europe’s liberal values to the test
The return of Europe’s oldest scourge