Pre-election survey

Not even half know the top EU candidates

The European Parliament in Strasbourg (archive photo)(Bild: APA/AFP/FREDERICK FLORIN)

A third to a quarter of respondents do not know Austria's top candidate for the EU elections. The best known are Harald Vilimsky (FPÖ) and Lena Schilling (Greens) with just under 50 percent each. A survey of 1,500 people conducted by Zielgruppen Büro shows that there is room for improvement.

The survey asked about the popularity of Reinhold Lopatka (ÖVP), Andreas Schieder (SPÖ), Harald Vilimsky (FPÖ), Lena Schilling (Greens) and Helmut Brandstätter (NEOS). The survey revealed that only a third to a quarter of respondents were familiar with the candidates for the EU elections in June. Party political inexperience is not a disadvantage, as Schilling is one of the best known. 

Bad impression prevails
Those who know the politicians tend to have a bad impression of them, as the survey also shows. Only a third to a quarter - depending on the person - said they had a good impression. One in four people said they were unable to assess or evaluate the work of the top candidates.

Reinhold Lopatka (ÖVP)(Bild: APA/Helmuth Fohringer)

Lena Schilling (Greens)(Bild: APA/ERWIN SCHERIAU)

Matthias Rohrer, pollster and managing director of Zielgruppen Büro, did not describe the result as surprising, but pointed out that some of them, such as Andreas Schieder and Reinhold Lopatka, had been active in Austrian politics for a long time. According to him, the awareness ratings will improve with the campaigns in the coming weeks. However, people should also know what the candidates stand for.

70 percent want to vote for the EU Parliament
1,500 people aged 16 and over were surveyed, who are representative of the Austrian electorate. A Eurobarometer survey of 1000 people recently came to the conclusion that 70 percent are likely to vote. According to this, the image of the European Union among Austrian respondents is rather negative. The most important issues in the election campaign in this country were the future of Europe, asylum and migration as well as climate change.