The search for the end of the government crisis
politics
Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) was sworn in as the new Federal Chancellor on Monday afternoon. Michael Linhart succeeds Schallenberg as Foreign Minister. The government crisis in Austria should thus officially be over. But not all Salzburg political scientists agree.
The answer to the question of whether the government crisis ended with the Chancellor’s roach varies widely. The ÖVP in Salzburg will be forgotten as quickly as possible in everyday work and events in Vienna and at the federal level will die – and make the voters forget.
On Monday there will be a full-day retreat on the state budget for 2022 with the coalition partners Green and Pink. The ÖVP need not have any further disruptions. Governor Wilfried Haslauer (ÖVP) also takes part in the state government’s budget meeting, but not yet personally. Haslauer is connected via Skype because he has still not fully recovered from his Covid 19 disease, his office announced on Monday morning. Above all, his infection values are still too high for a free test.
Greens more powerful after brief resignation
Erik Miklin, Professor of Politics at the University of Salzburg, is particularly excited about the role of the Greens in the coming weeks and months. All the power could now be in their hands to enforce their concerns – keyword climate policy or transparency law. Because if the ÖVP does not play along, there would really be new elections in the house.
Government parties want to prevent new elections
One thing speaks against new elections, above all, that nobody really wants them – at least on the part of the government. The Greens do not want to jeopardize the re-election of Alexander van der Bellen as Federal President in a year’s time through a potentially unpleasant National Council election campaign. From today’s perspective, the ÖVP can only lose in a National Council election. In addition, regional elections are due in spring 2023 in three ÖVP federal states, including Salzburg.