Vorarlberg chooses: Frauenpower with nine mayors!

Vorarlberg chooses: Frauenpower with nine mayors!

Raggal, Österreich - On April 14, 2025, the Vorarlberg communities chose their mayors, which is a further step in the equality of gender in local politics. This year, five new mayors were elected, in addition to four chosen on March 16, which increased the number of female municipal heads in Vorarlberg to a total of nine. Before that, there were eight mayors who led the shops of 96 communities. vienna.at reports that in Raggal, Reuthe and Viktorsberg there is a majority choice without lists.

The newly elected mayors include Barbara Mathies, who worked as a mayor of Vice in Klösterle up to the election, and Daniela Bilgeri from Krumbach, who follows on Egmont Schwärzler. Daniela Bilgeri received 266 preferred votes. The confirmed mayors, Alexandra Martin in Raggal, Bianca Moosbrugger-Petter in Reuthe and Manuela Marte in Viktorsberg, also successfully defended their positions.

resignation and changes

Irmgard Hagpiel in Kennelbach and Andrea Kaufmann in Dornbirn no longer competed, which has created space for new female leaders in Vorarlberg community. These developments are part of a comprehensive trend that can be observed in the entire Austrian local politics. The proportion of women among the mayors has increased steadily in recent years: ten years ago it was 5% of the 2,357 municipalities, today there are already 200 mayors.

Apart from the choice of women, there are also a number of new male mayors. Florian Schobesberger in Röns, Bernd Feuerstein in Bizau, Marc Meusburger in Egg and Johann Georg Fessler in Schnepfau are the new faces that move into the Bregenzerwald and the Vorarlberg region.

A positive trend for women in politics

The increasing number of women in management positions of their communities reflects a general trend that can also be observed in other federal states. In Tyrol, the number of candidates in the mayoral elections increased by 40 percent since the last election six years ago. This is seen as a positive signal that emphasizes the increase in women in municipal management positions, as Alfred Riedl, President of the Austrian Community Association, underlines. Kommunal.at reports that the majority of mayors can now be found in Lower Austria and Upper Austria, with Vorarlberg with six mayors.

The commitment to more women in local politics is also evident in the organization of specialist conferences and meetings, which take place especially for mayors. Such events should promote exchange and bundle experiences in order to support and encourage future politicians. The upcoming changes and the growing number of female heads of the community could still have far -reaching effects on the political landscape in Vorarlberg and all of Austria.