The Austrian legal system distinguished three different instruments of direct democracy: referendums, referendums and referendums. [12] Essentially, regional authorities rely on a number of bodies to carry out their tasks. In Austria, the offices of the municipal council and municipal administrations are composed of political representatives elected for one term. Elections are based on proportional representation, a closed list system and preferential votes. All groups conducting campaigns require signatures of support from three members of the National Council; i.e. 2,600 statements of support for participation in national parliamentary elections at the national level. Austria has a democratic system of government that guarantees political rights and civil liberties. The country has always been governed by grand coalitions of the centre-left Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) and the centre-right Austrian People`s Party (ÖVP). In recent years, the political system has come under pressure from the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), a right-wing populist party that openly nurtures nationalist and xenophobic sentiments. The Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) is a right-wing populist political party founded in 1955 to succeed the League of Independents. [28] According to polls, it mainly attracts the votes of young people and workers. [29] His nationalist rhetoric is directed against Muslims, immigrants and the European Union. [30] [31] The party gradually gained support after Jörg Haider took over the leadership of the party in 1986 until it won about 27% of the vote in the 1999 elections.
After being reduced to 10 per cent in the 2002 elections, they reached 17.5 per cent in 2008. This colourful political history leads to the current restructuring of the Austrian government – the ÖVP-Greens partnership – born in 2020. Remarkably, this is a first coalition of the two parties, most of which have different views on politics. The world is watching whether these two sides can truly come together to create a stable and environmentally friendly future for the country. There are currently five main parties in the Austrian parliament and below is an overview of each of them. Opposition parties have a realistic chance of representing themselves. Until recently, Austria was often governed by grand coalitions, a trend that fostered some public disappointment with the political process. A failed ÖVP-FPÖ government in 2019 was followed by an ÖVP-Green coalition in January 2020. If you are considering moving to another country, it is important to know how the government and political system work in that country.
It is also a good idea to gain an understanding of the criminal and legal system, as well as human and civil rights, women`s rights and lgbtqI rights. After all, these can be crucial factors when it comes to deciding whether to move there or not. Austria has enjoyed political stability since the Second World War. A former socialist statesman, Dr. Karl Renner, organized an Austrian administration after the war, and parliamentary elections were held in November 1945. In this election, the Conservative People`s Party (ÖVP) won 50% of the vote (85 seats) in the National Council, the Socialists 45% (76 seats) and the Communists 5% (4 seats). The next tripartite government governed until 1947, when the Communists left the government and the ÖVP led a government coalition with the Socialists, which governed until 1966. This year, the ÖVP won an absolute majority and governed alone for the next four years. Things reversed in 1970, when the SPÖ became the strongest party for the first time and won an absolute majority in 1971 under its charismatic president Bruno Kreisky. Between 1971 and 1999, the SPÖ ruled the country alone or with the ÖVP, with the exception of 1983-86, when it governed in coalition with the FPÖ, until the coalition collapsed when right-wing politician Jörg Haider became leader of the Freedom Party. There is an independent Austrian public organisation (Bundesamt für Korruptionspraevention und Korruptionsbekaempfung) which fights corruption in Austria. Possible cases of corruption can be reported to them.
As in many Western countries, the construction and infrastructure industries are considered the most vulnerable to this type of abuse. Corruption in Austria is generally low. In 2020, Austria ranked 15th out of 180 least corrupt countries in Transparency International`s Global Corruption Index, down two positions from 2016. In recent years, a number of high-ranking political figures have been implicated in allegations of corruption and purchase of political influence, with court cases pending. In September 2020, the ÖVP-Greens government published a draft law requiring the removal of online content classified as illegal within 24 hours. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) criticised the bill, warning that individual users would have little recourse if their content was removed. The bill was still under consideration at the end of the year. The Greens, a party that focuses on environmental and social justice issues as part of the global green movement, won 10.4% of the vote in 2008. They are particularly strong in urban areas, for example in Vienna, where they won 22% of the vote in the 2004 European elections.
In Neubau, they won 41% of the vote, more than the SPÖ and the ÖVP combined. The Greens attract centre-left intellectuals and voters between the ages of 18 and 30. Some insist on characterizing the Greens as leftists because they are perceived as anti-capitalist and certainly pursue anti-business rhetoric and less pro-business policies. However, this label confuses the differences between the Greens – who have a lot of confidence in local markets and direct democracy – and left-wing socialists and communists, who tend to favor centralization and planned economies and economic class issues.