 Between 1971 and 1999, the SPÖ ruled the country either alone or in conjunction with the ÖVP, except from 1983–86, when it governed in coalition with the Freedom Party, until the coalition broke when the right-wing politician Jörg Haider became the leader of the Freedom Party.After the election of 1999, despite emerging only in third place after the elections, the ÖVP formed a coalition with the right wing-populist Freedom Party (FPÖ) in early 2000.The SPÖ, which was the strongest party in the 1999 elections, and the Greens now form the opposition.