Parliamentary Elections 1999:Rightward Drift Unabated since 1986

Gains for the KPÖ in 1999Parliamentary Elections

The continuation of therightward drift, unabated since 1986, the emergence of SPÖ, ÖVP and FPÖ asthree parties of more or less the same size and which stand increasingly for thesame policies as well as the clear rebuff suffered by the Liberal Forum and theright wing populist Lugner are indicative of the results of the nationalparliamentary elections of 3 October 1999.

The not very novel attempt by theSPÖ “spin doctors” (1995: 38.06 per cent or 71 seats, 1999: 33.15 per centor 65 seats) to press critical voters to accept the unjust social policy of thecoalition by raising the spectre of a black-blue (ÖVP-FPÖ) coalition backfiredthis time. Evidently many voters regard the Greens as a parliamentarycounterweight to the coalition intrigues of SPÖ, ÖVP and FPÖ.

Unlike Chancellor Viktor Klima,Vice Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel - contrary to prognoses - managed to keep ÖVPlosses within bounds (1995: 28.29 per cent and 53 seats, 1999: 26.91 per centand 52 seats), thanks to the announcement to go into opposition, should the ÖVPbecome the third strongest party. Although it slid into third place the ÖVP isat present in a relatively favourable negotiating position vis-à-vis the SPÖand can exercise greater pressure on the social democrats in the course of thecoalition negotiations to carry their line.

The massive advance of the FPÖ(1995: 21.89 per cent and 40 seats, 1999: 26.91 per cent and 52 seats) is due tothe frustration potential built up due to the coalition policy. Above all, theincreased influence of the Haider party among the traditional voter stock of theSPÖ (industrial towns, workers, employees) shows that the social democraticpolicy pursued for years of adopting FPÖ demands - including questions ofasylum - only led to an increased loss of votes. The result of Lugner’s DU(Die Unabhängigen - The Independents) which remained well below allprognostications with its meagre 1.02 per cent shows that, as before, the FPÖholds the monopoly over populist policy.

The elimination of the LiberalForum (1995: 5.51 per cent and 10 seats, 1999: 3.65 per cent and no seat) fromParliament is evidently due to the fact that since the election of theneo-liberal professor of economy, Alexander van der Bellen, as head of theGreens, a vast liberal voters’ potential regards the party of the Greens(1995: 4.81 per cent and 9 seats, 1999: 7.40 per cent and 14 seats) as betterliberals.

For the KPÖ (1995: 13.939 votes i.e. 0.29 per cent, 1999: 22.016votes i.e. 0.48 per cent) the election results signify a clear gain as comparedto 1995. Likewise, the results of the 1999 elections to the European Parliament(20.497 votes) were also surpassed on the national level, with remarkableresults for the KPÖ in particular in Vienna (1995: 3.421 votes, 1999: 7.081votes) and Styria (1995: 3.121 votes, 1999: 4.686 votes). In Vienna the resultstopped those of the parliamentary elections of 1990.