Vienna chooses: FPÖ celebrates massive gains, SPÖ continues to be strongest power despite losses!

Vienna chooses: FPÖ celebrates massive gains, SPÖ continues to be strongest power despite losses!

Wien, Österreich - On April 27, 2025, the elections for the Vienna municipal council and the district representatives take place. According to 5min , about 1.14 million votes are called to hand over. The polling stations are open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and election cards must be received by the authority up to this point. Austrian citizens who were born on April 27, 2009 at the latest and have their main residence in Vienna are entitled to vote. EU citizens are only allowed to choose the district representatives.

A total of 284,956 election cards were issued for the vote. The polling stations close at 5 p.m. and the first trend forecasts are expected shortly afterwards. From around 6 p.m., the projections on the basis of the initially counted election sprinkles will be published, which can learn some delay by counting postal voting cards, as political scientist Peter Filzmaier explains.

First projections and results

First projections published at 6:45 p.m., indicate the following results: The SPÖ remains the strongest force with about 39.3% and 43 mandates, but must accept a loss of three seats. The FPÖ makes a significant leap forward with 20.5% and wins 14 mandates compared to the last choice. The Greens have a slight decline in 14.7% and 15 mandates, while the NEOs come to 9.61%, which means two more seats. The ÖVP, on the other hand, loses a total of ten mandates and reaches 10 seats.

The result also shows a 60% share of voter turnout. The FPÖ-EU MP Harald Vilimsky celebrates the result of his party as a success and at the same time expresses dissatisfaction with the federal government. Mayor Michael Ludwig announces talks with the Greens, Neos and the ÖVP and excludes a coalition with the FPÖ. The aim is to fix a new coalition before the summer.

electoral context and party landscape

The elections are 100 seats available in the local council, which are newly occupied. While more than a third of the population entitled to vote does not have an Austrian citizenship and is therefore not allowed to vote, 264,776 are not authorized to participate in the district representative elections. The voting of the district representatives is of great importance because the parties with the strongest votes can provide the district heads.

A total of 1,374,712 people can take part in the election. In this election, Michael Ludwig (SPÖ), Dominik Nepp (FPÖ), Karl Mahrer (ÖVP), Judith Pühringer (Greens) and Selma Arapović (Neos) are at the top of the election parties. The KPÖ and other small parties, such as links and Team HC Strache, also compete.

This choice is particularly important because it takes place in the context of a broad political landscape. In the last state election 2020, the SPÖ was the strongest party with 41.6% and 43 mandates, followed by the Greens with 14.8% and the ÖVP with 20.4%. At that time, the FPÖ had achieved its worst result since 1983.

The upcoming coalition talks will be decisive for how the political landscape in Vienna will develop and what challenges the new government will have to tackle in the coming years.