While Austria’s increasingly unpopular center-right and center-left parties quarrel with one another, broad swaths of the Austrian population continue to back the right-wing, antiglobalist Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ)—a clear signal that, despite what some regime analysts contend, the European sovereignist movement remains alive and well despite PiS’s defeat in Poland.
After losing much of its support in the wake of the Ibiza affair, the FPÖ regained the trust of many Austrians during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it staunchly opposed policies the mainstream parties unanimously backed, like draconian lockdown restrictions and vaccine mandates. Shortly thereafter, the FPÖ saw its support surge a second time in the wake of the onset of the Russo-Ukrainian war, when it again took a position diametrically opposed to the mainstream parties, which unanimously supported sanctions against Russia—sanctions that have wreaked havoc on the Austrian economy.
Instead of siding with NATO-aligned countries, the FPÖ argued that Austria ought to assume a position that aligns with The Declaration of Neutrality enshrined in its constitution.
In the months that followed, the FPÖ saw its support jump from around 20% to above 30%, making it the most popular party in the country by far. That support level has remained steady until today, a clear indication that the party’s positions on foreign policy, mass immigration, economic issues, and COVID-19 restrictions are reflective of those held by broad swaths of the Austrian population.
Now, as the party stands firmly at 30%, poised to assume the chancellorship in the next elections, the good news for the FPÖ continues to roll in as its primary competitors, the ruling, center-right Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) and the center-left SPÖ (Social Democratic Party) are at each other’s throats. Days ago, Christian Stocker, the ÖVP’s secretary-general took aim at the SPÖ chairman Andreas Babler in a public letter. Stocker accused Babler of taking part in “dirty property deals” and sharply criticized the SPÖ for failing to take a clear position on the Israel-Hamas war.
Referring to Hamas’ attacks on Israel on October 7th, Stocker wrote: “Those who remain silent are in agreement.” The secretary-general of the SPÖ, Sandra Breiteneder, quickly hit back, saying: “Instead of pointing the finger at others, the ÖVP must urgently address the dramatic turbulence within its own party.”
Breiteneder then sought to link the FPÖ to antisemitism, accusing the ÖVP of being “irresponsible” for governing alongside FPÖ in several states in light of the uptick in antisemitic incidents.
The FPÖ, however, has taken a clear position against antisemitism and what can arguably be regarded as the most ardent pro-Israel, anti-Hamas stance of any political party in Austria. In the days that followed the October 7th terrorist attacks, FPÖ Chairman Herbert Kickl and FPÖ MEP Harald Vilimsky both vehemently denounced the anti-Israel terror. Vilimsky said it is
shameful how Palestinians and groups of Arab origin in numerous EU countries simultaneously publicly celebrated Hamas’s acts of terror. These people must be expelled immediately and their organizational structures must be banned. We don’t need imported antisemitism in the EU.