Election victory in Vorarlberg: Parties celebrate surprising successes!

Election victory in Vorarlberg: Parties celebrate surprising successes!

The local elections in Vorarlberg generated a predominantly positive response for the parties responsible. How on oe24.at reported, the state parties expressed optimism about their results and the upcoming runoff elections in two weeks. SPÖ leader Andreas Babler raved about an “incredibly strong result” for Michael Ritsch in Bregenz, while FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl celebrated a continued “liberal run of success.” The ÖVP praised its candidates for a “great election campaign” and made it clear that they would still be in contention in the runoff election.

The Greens and NEOS also saw confirmation of their political work. Green Party General Secretary Olga Voglauer emphasized that the “years of commitment to the local people” had been reflected in good results. In Bludenz, Simon Tschann won the mayoral election without a runoff and is increasing the ÖVP's self-confidence. In contrast, FPÖ party leader Christof Bitschi described election day as an “absolute success day” that demonstrated the FPÖ's local roots, reported vorarlberg.ORF.at.

Prospects of political parties

There were also some surprises on election day, especially in the municipality of Mittelberg, where the FPÖ nominated a new mayor. The Greens are pleased with historic successes in Lustenau and Rankweil, and in Höchst the incumbent mayor Stefan Bösehörer was confirmed. The SPÖ state party chairman Mario Leiter took his own defeat in Bludenz calmly, but said that he would remain club chairman in the state parliament. What is particularly striking is the strength of the SPÖ, which is the largest faction in the Bregenz city council for the first time since 1995. This shows an exciting political dynamic in Vorarlberg, which is increasing anticipation for the upcoming runoff elections.