National Council election

Meinl-Reisinger with 93.4% NEOS top candidate

The NEOS elected Beate Meinl-Reisinger as their top candidate for the National Council elections in the fall at a general meeting in Graz on Saturday.(Bild: APA/ERWIN SCHERIAU)

At a general meeting in Graz on Saturday, the NEOS elected Beate Meinl-Reisinger as their top candidate for the National Council elections in the fall. The party leader received 93.4 percent of the votes. 

The Extended Board had previously voted unanimously in favor of Meinl-Reisinger, and the party leader had also clearly won the open online preselection.

Meinl-Reisinger received 93.4 percent of the 542 votes cast on Saturday. This means 506 voted for the party leader. In the run-up to the 2019 National Council elections, Meinl-Reisinger had received 96.1% of the vote to be chosen as the lead candidate. Party founder Matthias Strolz had achieved more than 98% in 2017.

Beate Meinl-Reisinger(Bild: APA/ERWIN SCHERIAU)

"Stay hungry and curious"
Following her election as top candidate, Meinl-Reisinger swore the members in for the upcoming ballot: "Self-sufficiency is not good, you have to stay hungry and curious. And we have this willingness, which is why I am confident that we will be more successful than ever in the National Council elections." The NEOS are "Ready like never before" (according to the slogan projected behind the party leader during the speech). "We will lead NEOS into government. We will renew Austria." Meinl-Reisinger emphasized that she would no longer be satisfied with the role of the "small opposition party".

According to the party leader, she has presented a clear plan "on how we can move into the future, how we can ease the burden on the middle and ensure competition again". This requires both long-term visions and very specific points. She believes "in every single person, in their drive and creativity", said Meinl-Reisinger. What is needed again is the belief "that you can build something on your own". "We want to lift the wings of every child. We want to do that and we will do that."

She also repeated familiar demands such as lowering the tax and contribution ratio. So that people "once again have the feeling that they can create something for themselves." A "trend reversal, a turning point" is needed and the NEOS could achieve this with their policies. Among other things, she once again brought up the "opportunity account for young people" that she had called for. She had set up a reform group for this purpose. A proposal is to be presented "in the near future".

"Increasingly broken place"
Like former MP Irmgard Griss before her, Meinl-Reisinger also lamented the current political culture. Politics is "not a good place, an increasingly broken place". One has the impression that it is all about belittling others in order to strengthen the position of one's own party". She would also like to "put our own house in order". The NEOS had also allowed themselves to drift and "played along", the party leader demanded a new style: "We can't go on like this." Instead, the party wants to "see what we can do together and we are ready for that. Ready like never before."

The other places on the federal list and the nine state lists will then be allocated. Here too, a provisional ranking has already been drawn up following the pre-election and the Executive Board, but this can still be changed by the General Assembly.