Unofficial politics

Upper Austria’s SPÖ is increasingly becoming a Titanic

This is how "Krone" cartoonist Milan A. Ilic sees the situation in the SPÖ.

(Bild: Milan Ilic)

The SPÖ Upper Austria is simply not coming to rest. According to insiders, more red comrades are set to leave the "sinking ship" after state party leader Michael Lindner. This means that the once proud "political ship" is heading towards a huge iceberg and is in danger of being wrecked.

The captain is the last to leave the sinking ship - this is probably only true on the high seas, but not in politics. If well-informed SPÖ circles are to be believed, Michael Lindner'sdemise is likely to be just the tip of the iceberg with which the red Titanic is threatening to collide.

Upper Austrian state elections are due in 2027
You don't have to be a polling expert to guess: Based on the latest election results in other federal states, it is likely to be extremely tight for the Social Democrats in Upper Austria in the 2027 state elections. Which brings us to the possible changes mentioned at the beginning.

Florian Koppler and his anchors
According to insiders, it is an open secret that regional managing director Florian Koppler will be the next red captain to abandon ship and seek refuge in other waters. There are apparently two scenarios to choose from. Lifeline one: Florian Koppler resigns as regional managing director and joins the housing industry or another institution close to the SPÖ.

Lifeline two (this seems more likely): Florian Koppler becomes deputy at the side of Dietmar Prammer, the mayoral candidate standing for election in January. A gross salary of 14,000 euros and a home game in Linz would be on offer here.

What to do with Peter Binder?
Incidentally, Peter Binder, Third President of the Provincial Parliament, who few expect to be the top candidate in 2027, is also said to be on the lookout for a lifeboat. A switch to the housing industry would be conceivable; talks with municipal companies are said to have taken place, but did not lead to the hoped-for result.

Last but not least, the question arises: who will Alois Stöger, who is leading the state party on an interim basis, bring on board the red Titanic? The broad pool of candidates that Florian Koppler has recently spoken of in the media could possibly just be a sailor's yarn.