Tarik Mete from Salzburg

Preferential vote emperor criticizes Babler’s list

Local councillor Tarik Mete misses candidates with a migration background on SPÖ leader Andreas Babler's list of candidates.(Bild: Tröster Andreas)

"Diversity looks different", says local councillor Tarik Mete about the SPÖ list for the National Council elections. He himself did not want to run either way.

SPÖ local councillor Tarik Mete became known beyond Salzburg's borders as the emperor of preferential votes in the last National Council election. At that time, he received more than 15,000 preferential votes from position 134 on the list, putting him in seventh place among all parties nationwide.

Mete will not be standing for election to the National Council in the fall. "I didn't apply and wasn't asked by Andi Babler either," he says. Mete was re-elected to the Salzburg City Council, where he also received the second most SPÖ votes after Bernhard Auinger. "My place is now in Salzburg, I have enough to do here," explains Mete, who is the managing director of Emco Privatklinik in his day job. Nevertheless, federal politics does not leave him completely cold.

The National Council election list of SPÖ leader Andreas Babler is causing criticism.(Bild: Zwefo)

"All we ever talk about is equal opportunities"
The SPÖ list for the National Council elections is a source of disappointment for the 37-year-old, whose grandparents immigrated to Austria from Turkey. "It's not about me. But diversity looks different," says Mete. "Ever since I got involved in politics, I've always been concerned with the representation of people with a migrant background." He is particularly sorry about former State Secretary Muna Duzdar, who was demoted from the list at the last minute for party tactical reasons.

"We always talk about equal opportunities. But the list procedure is not so permeable for some groups that don't have a big lobby," says Mete. From Salzburg's point of view, however, he is happy for Michaela Schmidt, who is in eighth place on the federal list and has a good chance of being elected to the National Council.