Last working day

Nehammer leaves after 1132 days in office

Up the stairs as Chancellor, down the stairs as Karl: Nehammer after the handover of office on Friday.

(Bild: Andy Wenzel)

Following the collapse of the coalition negotiations with the SPÖ and NEOS, Karl Nehammer has resigned as ÖVP leader. Now he is also relinquishing his office as Federal Chancellor - after 1131 days.

Nehammer took office with the broad support of his party and received 100% of the vote in his first election as ÖVP leader in May 2022. Poor election results repeatedly led to speculation about a return of his predecessor Sebastian Kurz, who had brought the People's Party years of electoral success. Following allegations of corruption, Kurz had pre-empted his dismissal by the National Council by resigning.

Up the stairs as chancellor, down the stairs as Karl: Nehammer after the handover of office on Friday.

(Bild: Andy Wenzel)

Served slightly shorter than Kurz
It was Kurz's second resignation after the National Council voted out the turquoise-blue government following the Ibiza affair and the end of the turquoise-blue government on May 27, 2019. At that time, a cabinet of experts led by Brigitte Bierlein took over the reins of government. Following the ÖVP's election victory and the negotiation of a coalition with the Greens, Kurz returned to the chancellorship on 7 January 2021. In total, he held office for 1168 days.

There was renewed speculation about Sebastian Kurz returning to the leadership of the ÖVP.

(Bild: APA/HANS KLAUS TECHT)

This means that the 52-year-old has been at the helm of government for slightly less time than his predecessor. The longest-serving Federal Chancellor to date was Bruno Kreisky (SPÖ), who led the SPÖ all-party governments from April 1970 to May 1983 - just over 13 years. Franz Vranitzky (SPÖ) had the second longest term of office with ten and a half years in the chancellorship, followed by Julias Raab (ÖVP) with eight years and Werner Faymann (SPÖ) and Leopold Figl (ÖVP) with over seven years each. Figl was sworn in in 1945 and was the first regular Federal Chancellor since 1945. 

Löger provisionally led the government for 6 days
Prior to this, Karl Renner (SPÖ) had led the provisional government as "State Chancellor". At just over seven months, Renner was also one of the shortest serving heads of government in the Second Republic. Only Brigitte Bierlein, the interim chancellor after the Ibiza affair, was in office for an even shorter period. Kurz's immediate predecessor Christian Kern (SPÖ) lasted just over a year and a half. 

Hartwig Löger

(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

Not included in the ranking were the heads of government provisionally entrusted with the "continuation of business" following resignations. Hartwig Löger carries the red lantern here: the ÖVP Finance Minister stepped in after Kurz's dismissal until Bierlein's civil servant government was sworn in - and was only in office for six days, from May 28 to June 3.