The "Krone" on site

Election fever in the Bregenz Landhaus

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Volare)

On Sunday, it quickly became clear who could call themselves the winner of the election. Most people expect a black-blue coalition to be in place in two weeks at the latest. Impressions of a historic election day:

The Landhaus was already well attended at 2 pm. It quickly became clear who would have reason to celebrate at the election party in the evening. The scattered black people buzzing around seemed liberated. A broad grin appeared on the faces of the Freedom Party. Feldkirch's deputy mayor and FPÖ member of parliament Andrea Kerbleder watched the election process together with FPÖ candidate Joachim Fritz in a relaxed manner. "The results from my home town are not in yet, but we are heading for a historic result," Kerbleder said happily. The Blue Party won 29% in Mittelberg - a result that Joachim Fritz from Kleinwalsertal was naturally more than satisfied with. In the end, it was enough for a whopping 12.52 percent in his home municipality - and even the all-powerful ÖVP remained below 50 percent.

A relaxed mood among ÖVP members.

(Bild: DIETMAR STIPLOVSEK / APA / picturedesk.com)

Red gloom
The SPÖ, on the other hand, was in a long mood. "We are still hoping for a gain in the cities," said campaign manager Philipp Kreinbucher, trying to radiate some confidence. However, it was already clear to him in the early afternoon that ÖVP lead candidate Markus Wallner's strategy had paid off: "He has declared a duel that never was one. But this has pushed the smaller parties into the background." Reinhold Einwallner from Bregenz, who will move from the National Council to the provincial parliament - assuming a corresponding preferential vote result - took a similar view: "As far as the future is concerned, we will probably concentrate fully on opposition work. I am already looking forward to the new FPÖ MPs," said the Social Democrat, declaring war on the Freedom Party in advance.

Business is counting on a black-blue government
The presidents of the Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Austrian Industries seem to be assuming a black-blue government - even if neither of them has said so directly. The duo arrived at the Landhaus during the afternoon. "The voters have cast a clear vote. From an economic point of view, it is a very pleasing result," said Wilfried Hopfner, head of the Chamber of Commerce. IVV Chairman Elmar Hartmann nodded in agreement and criticized the reform backlog of recent years: "This has led to a loss of competitiveness. We hope that this will now change," he said, referring to the IV's recently presented list of demands. However, he did not want to prioritize any of the 23 points in the list.

Hopes for reforms: IVV President Elmar Hartmann.

(Bild: Mathis Fotografie)

Working on issues that move people
AK President Bernhard Heinzle is also hoping for new momentum and more movement from a newly composed state government. "It was striking that the parties focused on issues such as housing, inflation, health and care during the election campaign. Issues that the Chamber of Labor has been addressing for months and in some cases years," he summarized. Once the government has been formed, he would like to see a meeting between the members of the government and the social partners. They could then consider which urgent issues need to be tackled right away.