Austrias Freedom Party leads in national election, would be first far-right victory since World War II

VIENNA — The far-right Freedom Party had a lead over the governing conservatives in Austria’s election on Sunday and was well-placed for its first win in a national parliamentary vote, a projection showed.But its chances of governing were unclear.The projection for ORF public television, based on partial counting, put support for the Freedom Party at 29% in the election and Chancellor Karl Nehammer’s Austrian People’s Party at 26.2%.

The center-left Social Democrats were in third place with 20.7%.Herbert Kickl, a former interior minister and longtime campaign strategist who has led the Freedom Party since 2021, wants to become Austria’s new chancellor on the back of the first far-right national election win in post-World War II Austria.The far right has tapped into voter frustration over high inflation, the war in Ukraine and the COVID pandemic.It has also built on worries about migration.In its election program, titled “Fortress Austria,” the Freedom Party calls for “remigration of uninvited foreigners,” for achieving a more “homogeneous” nation by tightly controlling borders and suspending the right to asylum via an “emergency law.”The Freedom Party also calls for an end to sanctions against Russia, is highly critical of Western military aid to Ukraine and wants to bow out of the European Sky Shield Initiative, a missile defense project launched by Germany.Kickl has criticized “elites” in Brussels and called for some powers to be brought back from the EU to Austria.But to become Austria’s new leader, he would need a coalition partner to command a majority in the lower house of parliament — and rivals have said they won’t work with Kickl in government.“The voter has spoken.

Change is wanted in our country,” Freedom Party general secretary Michael Schnedlitz said, though he acknowledged that “we don’t have the final result yet.”People’s Party general secretary Christian Stocker conceded that “we didn’t achieve f...