On chestnuts with...

Kunasek: “Press the stop button at the lead hospital”

The "Krone" met all the party leaders at the most famous Maronistand in Graz, the Maronessa.

(Bild: Radspieler Jürgen)

The "Krone" series on the regional elections in Styria: On Maroni with Mario Kunasek, the FPÖ's top candidate.

Mario Kunasek is considered the challenger in this election campaign - interest in the FPÖ leader is also high at the Maroni stand. "Mr. Governor," murmurs an elderly lady as she passes by. The post, currently held by the ÖVP, is the big target. The investigation into the Graz FPÖ financial scandal, in which Kunasek is also involved, does not seem to be standing in the way.

"Krone": Mr. Kunasek, "Your will, my mission" is written on your posters. How much Kickl is there in Mario Kunasek?
Mario Kunasek: Programmatically a lot, semantically and also in terms of language we are very different.

What music do you play in your car?
I like it to be a bit faster. House music and the 80s, that's my style.

The Liezen lead hospital is one of the biggest issues in the election campaign. If you were governor, would you call off the project, even if the ground-breaking ceremony had already taken place?
Definitely press the stop button and develop a plan B. That will be one of the first things I do when I become governor.

Mario Kunasek (FPÖ) in an interview with Maroni.

(Bild: Radspieler Jürgen)

The asylum shelters in Kindberg and Spital am Semmering have been closed. Is the FPÖ now missing the issue in the election campaign?
It was no surprise that this happened a few days before the election. But it is still a huge issue in Styria, in Austria it is the issue par excellence and was also decisive in the last elections. It is the core issue of the Freedom Party.

Are you getting vaccinated against coronavirus this year?
I'm not planning to, no thanks, I have a good immune system and have got through it quite well.

If you were to go out for chestnuts with a politician, dead or alive, who would it be?
Then I would go with the incumbent governor (Christopher Drexler, ÖVP, note), because I would be interested in one or two things, why they always come up with certain things at the end of the period and don't take the right measures beforehand.