It's all about the sausage

It’s all about the sausage in Waidhofen an der Thaya!

It's all about the sausage in the district town of Waidhofen an der Thaya. There, Mayor Josef Ramharter is challenging Councillor Gottfried Waldhäusl to a "duel".

(Bild: Krone KREATIV/zVg)

Waidhofen an der Thaya is one of the most exciting locations in the local council elections. There, ÖVP mayor Josef Ramharter, who is standing for election for the first time, is challenging Gottfried Waldhäusl (FPÖ), the second president of the provincial parliament, to a "duel".

It is not just the original election advertising gift from Anette Töpfl, ÖVP district manager of Waidhofen an der Thaya, who is running for mayor again in her home municipality and who "doesn't give a damn" about Vitis. Above all, it's all about the sausage in the district town of Waidhofen itself, where FPÖ state parliament president Gottfried Waldhäusl had already announced in September that he wanted to become mayor.

Turbulent times in the town hall
Following the illness of town leader Robert Altschach and his short-term successor Eunike Grahofer, ÖVP mayor Josef Ramharter is standing for election for the first time. Unusually for a municipal leader, he is now calling for a "duel" against the blue city councillor.

The ÖVP currently holds 13 of 29 municipal council seats, the second-placed FPÖ has seven seats, followed by the Greens with coalition partner and deputy Martin Litschauer with six seats. The "red lantern" is held by the SPÖ with three seats.

"I promised calm"
"When I took office, I promised that calm would finally return to the town hall and the district. I think I have achieved that," emphasizes Ramharter. Why is he calling for a "duel"? "I want to make the citizens aware that there are two different paths to choose here. Mine is a constructive and reliable one in which projects are implemented: 96% of all decisions were unanimous during my time in office." Waldhäusl-FPÖ would only have loudly criticized side issues, otherwise they would have voted the same way.

"Waidhofen is not the wild west!"
"There's no duel for me - we're not in the Wild West!" countered the arch-blue man. He is only interested in Waidhofen, emphasizes Waldhäusl, who wants to use his 35 years of experience in local politics and his network of 30 years in state politics to "bring Waidhofen back to the fore".

After the national elections, he smells a rat: almost the same number of people in the town voted for the FPÖ as for the ÖVP. He received 30% of all FPÖ votes in the district. "And for me, the question of mayor is not a question of supply. I already have a great job as Second President of the Provincial Parliament and will continue to have and do this after the municipal elections," he says.