VIENNA – In a significant political development, a representative from the far-right Freedom Party has been elected as the new speaker of Austria’s parliament on Thursday, marking a notable moment for the party following its recent electoral victory.
Walter Rosenkranz now holds the distinction of being the first individual from the Freedom Party to ascend to this pivotal role, which is one of the highest protocol positions in the country. Traditionally, this position has been occupied by representatives of the leading party.
The 62-year-old Rosenkranz, who is trained as a lawyer and previously led his party’s parliamentary faction, garnered support from 100 out of 183 lawmakers during the inaugural session of the new parliament. Although no other party nominated a speaker candidate, a number of votes were cast for different members of the legislature.
Despite many lawmakers opting to follow tradition and elect Rosenkranz as speaker, the Freedom Party’s role in the upcoming government remains uncertain.
Just days prior, President Alexander Van der Bellen chose to break with the tradition of appointing the leader of the top party to form a new government after the stalemate resulting from the parliamentary elections held on September 29. Instead, he assigned the task to the current Chancellor, Karl Nehammer.
Constructing a governing coalition will be essential for whoever takes the helm of the next government in order to secure a parliamentary majority.
However, the Austrian People’s Party, led by Nehammer, has stated it will not enter into a coalition with the Freedom Party under its current leader, Herbert Kickl. Additionally, the other three parties represented in the new parliament have also expressed their unwillingness to collaborate with the Freedom Party. Kickl has indicated that the Freedom Party would be open to joining a government, but only if he is appointed as chancellor.
Nehammer’s strategy is to pursue a coalition involving his conservative party, the center-left Social Democrats, and one of the smaller parties, which could either be the liberal Neos or the Green Party focused on environmental issues.
Notably, Rosenkranz was the Freedom Party’s candidate in the 2022 presidential race, where he finished significantly behind Van der Bellen.
