“In the coming days”, Karl Nehammer will step down as Chancellor of Austria and the presidency of his party. The politician announced this Saturday, January 4, after ending negotiations with the Social Democrats to try to form the next government.
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“ After the breakdown of coalition negotiations, I (…) will step down from both my role as Chancellor and Chairman of the People’s Party in the coming days and allow for an orderly transition », posted conservative Karl Nehammer (Austrian People’s Party, ÖVP) on the social network Austria.
This unexpected decision could lead to early elections or force the conservatives to negotiate with the far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), which has arrived in the lead in the legislative elections with 28.8% of the votes.
Failed three-way negotiations
The chancellor’s upcoming resignation comes the day after the decision of the liberal Neos party to withdraw from tripartite negotiations aimed at forming a centrist government, the aim of which was to remove the FPÖ from power. The latter, although leading the legislative elections, was unable to find allies to form a government.
Karl Nehammer’s ÖVP came in second place with 26.3% of the vote, followed by the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ, center-left) with 21.1%. These results led Karl Nehammer to initiate discussions with the SPÖ and Neos to form a government, but the three-way negotiations failed on Friday with Neos’ withdrawal.
The two remaining parties said they wanted to continue the work. But on Saturday, after 24 hours of further discussions, the chancellor announced on agreement with SPÖ impossible on key issues » and that, « therefore ”, he put “ end of negotiations with SPÖ “. He lamented not having been able to create a “ strength of political centrism in order to build a bulwark against radicals “.
“ I have a deep conviction that radicals do not offer the solution to a single problem, but only live to highlight the problems “, he added, claiming to have ” always fought for stability ”, even if it was “ not sexy in politics “.
The FPÖ still rejected by other political parties
On Friday, Austrian President Alexander van der Bellen called on the ÖVP and the SPÖ to form a government “ without delay “. He had initially asked the Conservatives to form a stable government that respected the “ foundations of our liberal democracy “. In the past, he has repeatedly expressed reservations about the radical leader of the FPÖ, Herbert Kickl.
A coalition of three parties to form a government would have been a first since 1949 in Austria, where the economy is losing momentum while the public deficit is soaring. The conservative chancellor had already warned that the coalition discussions, which began in October – initially without the liberals – promised to be difficult.
The ÖVP has ruled the country of 9 million inhabitants since 1987. It has already governed twice with the FPÖ as a minority partner, in 2000 and in 2017. Chancellor Nehammer said he was open to discussions with the FPÖ FPÖ, but he has always ruled out working with its leader Herbert Kickl.