A Far-Right Government in Austria Would Be a Jolt, but Not Unexpected
The New York Times
The Freedom Party and its leader, Herbert Kickl, have steadily built support by demonizing immigrants, while entering Austria’s political mainstream.
The political party on the verge of leading Austria would take an already conservative country into a growing group of nations shifting to the far-right of European politics. It has flirted with Nazi slogans, cozied up to Russia and drawn warnings from Holocaust survivors’ groups. It campaigned on promises to deport immigrants and ban political forms of Islam.
The Freedom Party, known as the FPÖ, and its firebrand leader, Herbert Kickl, were given the chance to form a governing coalition this week, after efforts to bar them from power collapsed. If they succeed in forming a government, it would be a shock to the Austrian political system and a further jolt to Western Europe, where similarly far-right parties are surging in France, Germany and elsewhere.
But it would not be a surprise.
The Freedom Party’s rise follows years of growing acceptance of the far right in Austrian politics. Its growth has been helped by scandals and an ideological shift in the more mainstream conservative party that has led Austria’s governments for 15 of the last 25 years.
Unlike in neighboring Germany, where all other parties have refused to include the right-wing-populist Alternative for Germany in federal ruling coalitions, other parties in Austria have allowed the Freedom Party to share power for years as a junior partner.
The Freedom Party has broadened its appeal in recent elections with an anti-establishment message that harshly criticizes immigrants, Covid restrictions, the European Union and support for Ukraine in its defense against the Russian invasion. The party has gained support from blue-collar workers, university graduates and, critically, women. In elections for the European Parliament this summer, it was the most popular party among Austrian voters under the age of 35.
