Van der Bellen sworn in: New era for Styria under Kunasek!

Van der Bellen sworn in: New era for Styria under Kunasek!

On Thursday, December 19, 2024, Mario Kunasek was sworn in as the new Governor of Styria by Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen. With this appointment, Kunasek succeeds Christopher Drexler, who was appointed to office on July 4, 2022. In his speech, Van der Bellen praised Styria's cultural and economic diversity and emphasized the importance of promoting and preserving this diversity. During the ceremony there were no critical comments from the head of state, who instead humorously pointed out that Kunasek would “also be a bit of my state governor” since he temporarily lives in the Mürzsteg region. This friendly exchange illustrated the positive relationship between the Federal President and the new state governor.

Political changes in Styria

Mario Kunasek, who goes down in history as Styria's first liberal governor, leads a blue-black state government that was recently elected by the new Styrian state parliament. This makes him only the third politician from the so-called “third camp” to lead a state government in Austria - after the late Jörg Haider and Gerhard Dörfler. When Kunasek was sworn in, he was accompanied by his family and several party friends who supported his new role. This political reorganization in Styria represents a significant step for the FPÖ and underlines its influence on state politics.

Federal President Van der Bellen, who has had a close relationship with Styria in the past, reiterated how important a lively exchange between him and the governor is in turbulent times, as former governor Drexler also emphasized. The new state governor is pleased with the offer of cooperation and the invitation to an exchange with the Federal President, which indicates cooperative governance. At this strategic meeting it becomes clear that the coming years could be crucial for Styria, not only politically but also in terms of regional developments.

You can find more details about the swearing-in at 5min.at and the political situation in Styria news.steiermark.at.