Europe | Austrian populists

The alarming comeback of Austria’s far-right Freedom Party

And the rise of Herbert Kickl

Chairman of the Austrian Freedom Party (FPOe) Herbert Kickl speaks during a party campaign rally of the FPOe Carinthia in Klagenfurt, Carinthia on February 24, 2023, ahead of local elections. - Sunk by a corruption scandal four years ago, Austria's far-right is gaining back ground rapidly, currently polling ahead of all other parties in the small Alpine nation. The FPOe has been able to bank on voter anxieties over the war, inflation and migration, as well as anger over strict Covid-19 measures during the pandemic. (Photo by Alex HALADA / AFP) (Photo by ALEX HALADA/AFP via Getty Images)
Image: Getty Images
|VIENNA

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?”

From the March 18th 2023 edition

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