Political storm in Linz: Mayor Luger under pressure!

Political storm in Linz: Mayor Luger under pressure!

The Mayor of Linz Klaus Luger (SPÖ) is under massive pressure due to serious allegations. It has become known that in 2017 he forwarded questions for the Hearing on the spot of the artistic director of the Linz event company Liva to the former Brucknerhaus director Dietmar Kerschbaum in advance. This was granted on Tuesday by Luger, which triggered a wave of outrage within urban politics. The Linz ÖVP immediately demands its resignation. Vice Mayor Martin Hajart described Lugers behavior as a "lying construct" that has now broken, and pointed out the enormous damage to the city, such as The press reported.

political turbulence and trust questioned

Luger, who initially claimed not to know about the questionable practices, is now faced with not only political, but also possibly criminal consequences. In a press release, Hajart said that Luder's responsibility was not only unsustainable as a mayor, but also as chairman of the Liva Supervisory Board. In the meantime, the Green Party also demands that the SPÖ are responsible for its mayor, since "the credibility of the entire SPÖ is at stake," said the state spokesman Stefan Kaineder.

The situation continued to escalate when after Kerschbaum's exemption in July 2023, due to the suspicion of in-Sich shops and questionable, the chats between Luger and Kerschbaum came to light. These chats show that Luger knew the content of the hearing in advance and, what his statement, only undermined it completely months later. In addition, Luger promised to commission an expert opinion on clarifying the allegations, which increasingly represents the demand for an immediate resignation, as ORF OÖ emphasized. Based on these developments, Luger will now have to assert himself in public and within his party, while the political waves in Linz are high.