Exciting election Sunday: Who wins the candidates for mayor?

Exciting election Sunday: Who wins the candidates for mayor?

On Sunday, March 16, 2025, the municipal council and mayoral elections took place in Vorarlberg- and that under consistently dark, wet sky. Despite the uncomfortable weather, numerous eligible voters and mayor candidates made their way to the polling stations. The first polling station in Warth, Bregenz district, closed at 10 a.m., while 20 municipalities closed the polling stations before 12 noon and remained open to 5 p.m. to 1 p.m. At 1:00 p.m. the final line - the polling stations were tight, and the counts began, as reported by vorarlberg.orf.at .

A total of new municipal councils were elected in 96 municipalities, with 61 municipalities also provided directly for the mayoral election. Of the 307,890 eligible voters, they had to choose 198 lists. Among the 129 candidates, including only 20 women, there will be a runoff election on March 30 in cases without an absolute majority for the mayors after the count. The ÖVP currently provides the majority of 48 of the 96 mayors and is therefore a clear favorite. An exciting argument between incumbent Michael Ritsch (SPÖ) and Roland Breakfast (ÖVP) can be expected in the state capital of Bregenz. There are also exciting duels in other cities such as Bludenz, Feldkirch and Lustenau, such as Salzburg24.at reports .

The choice not only questions the future of the individual communities, but could also have a lasting impact on the political balance in Vorarlberg. Depending on the size of the municipality, 1,839 mandates were awarded, which corresponds to an increase of 33 seats compared to the past elections. Since the state parliament parties do not always clearly present themselves on the ballot papers, the exact sum of the party representatives in the individual communities is confusing. The FPÖ, the Greens, the Social Democrats and the NEOS go into the race in various municipalities, while the ÖVP can also claim their influence in the largest cities. However, the proportion of women remains worryingly low, with only eight representatives among the 96 mayor wastels in Vorarlberg.