Bankruptcy in the local council

Where election campaign costs remain “limitless” again this year

(Bild: P. Huber)

Before every election, at least one party has the idea of capping campaign costs. However, the black majority in the town hall did not even want to discuss a 30,000 euro limit before the municipal elections in January.

In Tulln, FPÖ city councillor Andreas Bors chose the most recent council meeting for this not-so-new initiative. However, his urgent motion to pass an upper limit of 30,000 euros was immediately rejected by the People's Party, which has an absolute majority. The reason given was that it was simply not an issue for the municipal council.

"Tulln should be a role model for a fair, transparent and citizen-oriented election campaign. The time for wastefulness is over," emphasized Bors in the run-up to the meeting. After the meeting, the tone of the Freedom Party was harsher: "When it comes to a separate coat of arms for Nitzing, which is actually also within the authority of the state, there is a long and wide-ranging discussion in the municipal council, but the ÖVP didn't even want to discuss our proposal!"

Other parties would be in favor of the border
The other parties in Tulln, however, would even have had something to gain from the FPÖ's proposal. According to regional media, the SPÖ considers the expenditure of the equivalent of around 2 euros per eligible voter to be more than reasonable, while an agreement for the Greens would be "desirable". The Neos would prefer to reduce all party subsidies.