Austrian parliamentary elections yesterday brought the Freedom Party, led by Herbert Kickl, to its first-ever outright victory. The Freedom Party had been stalking Austrian politics for decades, and it pushed the Austrian People’s Party under Sebastian Kurz to move dramatically to the right on questions of immigration.
Kurz’s party became subject to scandal and fell from power, allowing Social Democrats and Greens to form a governing coalition. Austria decided to try the hard-right option, with mounting discontent over immigration policy and rising energy prices (and the Ukraine war that is behind them).
It’s unclear whether the Freedom Party will find a partner with whom they can build a governing coalition.