Because of main residence

Confusion about politicians’ place of residence on the ballot paper

Citizens cast their votes today, Friday, and on January 19.

(Bild: P. Huber)

Observant citizens are surprised that a candidate is standing in the district of Mattersburg although he lives in the district of Oberpullendorf. The party in question reacts with surprise.

The 2025 state election is constantly raising new questions. "Does a candidate have to run in the district in which he lives or is he allowed to choose his own political district?" A look at the People's Party's list of candidates in the Mattersburg district triggered this debate behind the scenes at the Landhaus. "The candidate's main place of residence should be stated on the ballot paper," the statement reads.

A fuss about Sagartz and Co.
However, the information sometimes causes confusion. The ÖVP's top candidate, Christian Sagartz, officially has Pöttsching as his home town, but he actually has his house in Oberloisdorf in the district of Oberpullendorf. Melanie Eckhardt is in second place. The center of her political work is Mattersburg, where she has a company headquarters, but she is actually at home in Pöttsching. For Christoph Ramhofer, who came third, the information on the ballot paper matches the facts.

Local commitment necessary
Julia Schneider-Wagentristl, on the other hand, is registered in Zemendorf-Stöttera. Apart from a farm in Kleinfrauenhaid, she actually lives in Oslip in the district of Eisenstadt-Umgebung. "It's difficult to explain this to a voter. Normally, every normal citizen expects a local politician to be there for the people 365 days a year. In order to meet these requirements, heartfelt commitment on the ground is absolutely essential," says one head of office by vocation.

Criticism of "backdoor" election campaign costs
The People's Party reacted with surprise to the debate. "Legally, all requirements for the eligibility of our candidates are perfectly fulfilled," the office of the lead candidate stated. The accusations are nothing more than "old hat". "The only party that actually does not abide by the law is the SPÖ. This is clearly shown by the obvious circumvention of the upper limit for election campaign costs," the criticism states. The SPÖ cannot understand this accusation: "Anyone driving through the district of Mattersburg will notice that the ÖVP has put up many times more election posters than the SPÖ." Regardless of this, today and on January 19, 250,399 Burgenlanders have their say.