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Freedom Party of Austria

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Freedom Party of Austria
Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs
Abbreviation FPÖ
Leader Heinz-Christian Strache
Founded 7 April 1956
Preceded by Federation of Independents
Headquarters Theobaldgasse 19/4
A-1060 Vienna
Newspaper Neue Freie Zeitung
Student wing Ring Freiheitlicher Studenten
Youth wing Ring Freiheitlicher Jugend
Membership 50,000 (2014)[1]
Ideology Right-wing populism
National conservatism
European affiliation EAF (2010–2014)
MENL (2014–present)
International affiliation Liberal International[10] (1978–1993)
European Parliament group Europe of Nations and Freedom
Colours Blue
National Council
38 / 183
Federal Council
13 / 61
European Parliament
4 / 18

The Freedom Party of Austria[note 1] (German: Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs, FPÖ) is a right-wing populist[12][13] political party in Austria. The party, led by Heinz-Christian Strache, is a member of the Europe of Nations and Freedom group in the European Parliament.

The FPÖ was founded in 1956 as the successor to the short-lived Federation of Independents (VdU), representing the "Third Camp" of Austrian politics, i. e. pan-Germanists and national liberals opposed to both socialism and Catholic clericalism. The party's first leader was Anton Reinthaller, a former Nazi functionary and SS officer. In the Austrian party system, the FPÖ was from its foundation a third party with only modest support until it entered into government together with the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ), following the 1983 legislative election. In 1979, the party was admitted to the Liberal International. When Jörg Haider was chosen as new FPÖ party leader in 1986, the party started an ideological turn towards right-wing populism. This new political course soon resulted in a strong surge in electoral support, although it also led the SPÖ to break its ties. In 1993, after a controversial proposal on immigration issues, the adherents of a position closer to classical liberalism broke away from the FPÖ and formed the Liberal Forum (LiF). This new party took over the FPÖ's membership in the Liberal International, since the FPÖ considered itself forced to leave.

In the 1999 legislative election the FPÖ won 26.9% of the vote, its best-ever result in a nationwide election, and came ahead of the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) by a small margin. This led the ÖVP to agree to form a coalition government with the FPÖ in 2000. The FPÖ soon became uncomfortable with governing and fell sharply in the 2002 legislative election, where it gained only 10.0% of the vote; however, the two parties agreed to continue their coalition following the election. In 2005 increasing internal disagreements in the FPÖ led Haider and many leading party members (including the party's ministers) to defect and form the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ), which replaced the FPÖ as government partner.

Since then, under Strache's leadership, the party has again attracted an increase in its popular support. In the 2013 legislative election the FPÖ won 20.5% of the vote and, more recently, it came ahead either of the SPÖ or the ÖVP in some state elections, entered in a SPÖ-led government in Burgenland and gained more than 30% of the vote in Vienna. Finally, in the 2016 presidential election, FPÖ member Norbert Hofer won the first round, receiving 35.1%, but was narrowly defeated by Green Party's candidate Alexander Van der Bellen, 49.7% against 50.3%, in the run-off. However, on 1 July 2016, the results were invalidated by the Constitutional Court of Austria due to possible procedural irregularities, after an appeal by the party's leader, Heinz-Christian Strache.[14]


Political background[edit]

Further information: German nationalism in Austria

The FPÖ is a descendant of the pan-German[15] and national liberal camp (Lager) dating back to the Revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas.[16] During the interwar era, the national liberal camp (gathered in the Greater German People's Party)[17] fought against the mutually-hostile Christian Social and Marxist camps in their struggles to structure the new republic according to their respective ideologies.[18] After a short civil war, the Federal State of Austria, an authoritarian Christian Social dictatorship, was established in 1934.[18] By 1938, with the Anschluss of Austria into Nazi Germany, the national liberal camp (which had always striven for an inclusion of Austria into a Greater Germany) had been swallowed whole by Austrian National Socialism and all other parties were eventually absorbed into Nazi totalitarianism.[18] Both Socialists and Christian Socials were persecuted under the Nazi regime, and the national liberal camp was scarred after the war due to guilt by association with National Socialism.[18]

In 1949, the Federation of Independents (VdU) was founded as a national liberal alternative to the main Austrian parties—the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) and the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP),[19] successors to the interwar era Marxist and Christian Social parties.[18] The VdU was founded by two liberal Salzburg journalists—former Nazi Germany prisoners—who wanted to stay clear of the mainstream socialist and Catholic camps and feared that hostility following the hastily devised postwar denazification policy (which did not distinguish between party members and actual war criminals) might stimulate a revival of Nazism.[18][20] Aiming to become a political home to everyone not a member of the two main parties, the VdU incorporated an array of political movements—including free-market liberals, populists, former Nazis and German nationalists, all of whom had been unable to join either of the two main parties.[19][21][22] The VdU won 12% of the vote in the 1949 general election, but saw its support beginning to decline soon afterward. It evolved into the FPÖ by 1955/56 after merging with the minor Freedom Party in 1955;[23] a new party was formed on 17 October 1955, and its founding congress was held on 7 April 1956.[24][25]

Early years (1956–1980)[edit]

The first FPÖ party leader was Anton Reinthaller, a former Nazi Minister of Agriculture and SS officer.[26] He had been asked by ÖVP Chancellor Julius Raab to take over the movement rather than let it be led by a more socialist-leaning group.[27] While the majority of former Nazis had probably joined the two main parties in absolute numbers, they formed a greater percentage of FPÖ members due to the party's small size.[27] Nevertheless, none of them were real revolutionaries and they pursued pragmatic, non-ideological policies.[27] The FPÖ served as a vehicle for them to integrate in the Second Republic; the party was a welcome partner with both the SPÖ and ÖVP in regional and local politics, although it was excluded at the national level.[27][28] The ÖVP and the FPÖ ran a joint candidate for the 1957 presidential election, who lost.[27]

Reinthaller was replaced as leader in 1958 by Friedrich Peter (also a former SS officer), who led the party through the 1960s and 1970s and moved it towards the political centre.[29] In 1966 the ÖVP-SPÖ Grand Coalition which had governed Austria since the war was broken, when the ÖVP gained enough votes to govern alone. SPÖ leader Bruno Kreisky (himself a Jew) defended Peter's past and initiated a political relationship—and a personal friendship—with Peter; in 1970 the FPÖ was, for the first time, able to tolerate an SPÖ minority government.[27][30] In 1967 the more extreme faction in the FPÖ broke away and established the National Democratic Party, seen by some observers as a final shedding of the party's Nazi legacy.[31] Under the influence of Kreisky, a new generation of liberals brought the FPÖ into the Liberal International in 1978.[10][30] During the years under Peter the party never won more than 8% of the national vote in general elections, and generally did not have much political significance.[19]

Steger leadership (1980–1986)[edit]

Liberal Norbert Steger was chosen as new FPÖ party leader in 1980; in an effort to gain popularity, he helped the FPÖ become established as a moderate centrist liberal party.[19][29] His vision was to transform the FPÖ into an Austrian version of the German Free Democratic Party, focusing on free-market and anti-statist policies.[32] In the 1980s, the Austrian political system began to change; the dominance of the SPÖ and ÖVP started to erode, and the Austrian electorate began to swing to the right. SPÖ leader Bruno Kreisky had encouraged the FPÖ's move to the centre, in order to establish an SPÖ-FPÖ alliance against the ÖVP. The 1983 general election was a watershed; the SPÖ lost its absolute majority in Parliament, which resulted in the formation of an SPÖ-FPÖ "Small Coalition".[29] Ironically, the 1983 election result was the worst for the FPÖ in its history (it received slightly less than 5% of the vote), and during the next few years the party saw 2-3% support—or even less—in opinion polls. As a consequence, the party was soon torn by internal strife.[30][33]


During the 1986 National Convention in Innsbruck, the internal struggle developed into an open conflict; this led Haider to victory as new FPÖ party leader with 58% of the vote, supported by conservative and pan-German factions.[19][29][30][35] However, incoming SPÖ Chancellor Franz Vranitzky—who also entered office in 1986—had strong negative feelings towards Haider, whom he felt was too far-right. Vranitzky subsequently announced an election in 1986, in the process disbanding the SPÖ-FPÖ "Small Coalition" and, after the election, entered into a coalition with the ÖVP.[36] Under Haider's leadership, the FPÖ increased its vote to 9.7%,[37] while the party gradually became more right-wing and its former liberal influence waned.[38] As the FPÖ increased its electoral support with Haider's radical-populist rhetoric, the party reduced its chances of forming coalitions with other parties.[37]

Haider leadership (1986–2000)[edit]

Jörg Haider (2007).
Further information: Jörg Haider


While Haider often employed controversial rhetoric, his expressed political goals included small government with more direct democracy rather than centralized totalitarianism.[16] Following the increasing importance of immigration as a political issue, in 1993 the party decided to launch the "Austria First!" initiative (calling for a referendum on immigration issues). The initiative was controversial and five FPÖ MPs, including Heide Schmidt, left the party and founded the Liberal Forum (LiF). The FPÖ's relations with the Liberal International also became increasingly strained, and later that year the FPÖ left the LI (which was preparing to expel it). In turn, the LiF soon joined the Liberal International instead.[41] In 1999, Haider was again elected Governor of Carinthia.[35]

Coalition government (2000–2005)[edit]

In the 1999 general election the FPÖ won 27% of the votes, more than in any previous election—beating the ÖVP for the first time by a small margin. In February 2000, the ÖVP agreed to form a coalition government with the FPÖ.[42] Normally, Haider should have become federal chancellor. However, due in part to international criticism of the FPÖ's participation in the government, Wolfgang Schüssel of the ÖVP took the post instead. As a concession to the FPÖ, the party was given power to appoint the Ministers of Finance and Social Affairs.[38] Later that month Haider, who was deemed too controversial to be part of the government even in a junior minister's role, stepped down as party chairman, replaced by Susanne Riess-Passer.[43] Having threatened a diplomatic boycott of Austria, the other fourteen European Union (EU) countries introduced sanctions after the government had been formed; other than formal EU meetings, contacts with Austria were reduced. The measures were justified by the EU, which stated that "the admission of the FPÖ into a coalition government legitimises the extreme right in Europe."[44]




Haider's departure for BZÖ[edit]

After an internal row had threatened to tear the FPÖ apart, former chairman Jörg Haider—followed by then-current chairman and his sister Ursula Haubner, vice chancellor Hubert Gorbach and the entire FPÖ contingent of the government—left the party and on 4 April 2005 founded a new political party called the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ).[48][49][50] Austria's chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel followed, changing his coalition with the FPÖ into cooperation with the BZÖ.[51] In Haider's stronghold of Carinthia, the local FPÖ branch became the Carinthia branch of the BZÖ.[50]

Strache leadership (2005–present)[edit]

The FPÖ fared much better than the BZÖ in polls following the 2005 split,[52] with the first tests in regional elections in Styria[53] and Burgenland.[54] On 23 April 2005 Heinz-Christian Strache was elected as new chairman of the FPÖ, taking over from interim leader Hilmar Kabas. As most of the party's office-seeking elite had gone over to the BZÖ, the FPÖ was again free from responsibility. Under Strache the party's ideology grew more radical, and it returned to its primary goal of vote-maximising.[55] The FPÖ did reasonably well in October's Vienna election, in which Strache was the leading candidate and ran a campaign directed strongly against immigration.[citation needed] It took a 14.9% share, while the BZÖ won just 1.2%.[56]


Heinz-Christian Strache speaking at a political rally

In December 2009 the local Carinthia branch of the BZÖ, its stronghold, broke away and founded the Freedom Party in Carinthia (FPK); it cooperated with the FPÖ at the federal level, modeling itself on the German CDU/CSU relationship.[58] The leader of the branch, Uwe Scheuch, had fallen out with BZÖ leader Josef Bucher after the latter had introduced a "moderate, right-wing liberal" and more economically oriented ideology.[59] In the 2010 Vienna elections, the FPÖ increased its vote to 25.8% (slightly less than the record result of 1996); this was seen as a victory for Strache, due to his popularity among young people. This was only the second time in the postwar era that the SPÖ lost its absolute majority in the city.[60][61]

After its convention in early 2011 midway between general elections, the FPÖ had a support in opinion polls of around 24-29%—at par with the SPÖ and ÖVP, and above the BZÖ. Among people under 30 years of age, the FPÖ had the support of 42%.[62][63] In June 2015 the main part of the federal party section of Salzburg split of and formed the Free Party Salzburg.[64]

In the 2016 Austrian presidential election, Freedom Party candidate Norbert Hofer won the first round of the election, receiving 35.1% of the vote, making that election the Freedom Party's best ever election result in its history.[65][66][67][68] However, in the second round, Hofer was defeated by Alexander Van der Bellen, who received the support of 50.3% compared to Hofer's 49.7%.[69] On July first the Constitutional Court of Austria voided the results of the second round due to mishandling of postal votes; although the court did not find evidence of deliberate manipulation.[70] The re-vote will take place on 2 October 2016 according to Austrian Chancellor Christian Kern.[71]



The present FPÖ has variously been described as right-wing populist,[73] national conservative,[74] "right-conservative",[75] "right-national",[76] and far right.[77][78][79] The party has traditionally been part of the national liberal camp, and generally identifies with a freiheitlich (libertarian) profile.[16] Leading current party members such as Andreas Mölzer and Harald Vilimsky have considered themselves as national liberal "cultural Germans",[74][80] while Barbara Rosenkranz has considered her ideology as national conservative.[81]

Individual freedom[edit]




Immigration and Islam[edit]


The party maintained that "the protection of cultural identity and social peace in Austria requires a stop to immigration," maintaining that its concern was not against foreigners, but to safeguard the interests and cultural identity of native Austrians.[85] Although during the late 1990s the party attacked the influence of radical Islam, this was later expanded to include "Islamisation" and the increasing number of Muslims in general.[86] According to The Economist, the hostility to Muslims is "a strategy that resonates with voters of Serbian background, whom the party has assiduously cultivated."[87] The party has also vowed to outlaw the distribution of free copies of the Koran.[88]

During the period of ÖVP-FPÖ government, many amendments were introduced to tighten the country's immigration policies.[3] The number of new asylum applications, for example, was reduced from 32,000 in 2003 to 13,300 in 2006.[89]


From the mid-1980s, the concept of Heimat (a word meaning both "the homeland" and a more general notion of cultural identity) has been central to the ideology of the FPÖ, although its application has slightly changed with time. Initially, Heimat indicated the feeling of national belonging influenced by a pan-Germanic vision; the party assured voters in 1985 that "the overwhelming majority of Austrians belong to the German ethnic and cultural community." Although it was noted then that Austria was the mother country which held the national traditions, this would later be favoured more explicitly over the pan-German concept.[85] In 1995 Haider declared an end to pan-Germanism in the party, and in the 1997 party manifesto the former community of "German people" was replaced with the "Austrian people".[90] Under the leadership of Strache, the concept of Heimat has been promoted and developed more deeply than it had been previously.[91] After his reelection as chairman in 2011, the German aspects of the party's programme were formally reintroduced.[92]

Foreign policy[edit]



By 2010, under Heinz-Christian Strache's leadership, the party became more friendly towards Israel. In December 2010 the FPÖ (along with the representatives of like-minded rightist parties) visited Israel, where they issued the "Jerusalem Declaration", which affirmed Israel's right to exist and defend itself, particularly against Islamic terror.[95][96][97] At the FPÖ's invitation, Israeli Deputy Minister Ayoob Kara of the Likud party subsequently visited Vienna.[98] Strache, at about the same time, said he wanted to meet with the front figures of the American Tea Party movement (which he described as "highly interesting").[97][99] He has also declared himself "a friend of the Serbs", who constitute one of the largest immigrant groups in Austria.[100] Siding with Serbia, the FPÖ rejects the independence of Kosovo.[100]

Presently the FPÖ advocates the introduction of a hard north Euro and a soft south Euro.[101]

International relations[edit]


Under the leadership of Strache, the party has cooperated mainly with the Northern League, Vlaams Belang (successor to the Vlaams Blok, which it has traditionally maintained good ties with),[104] and the Pro Germany Citizens' Movement in Germany.[105][106] The FPÖ also has contacts with the Danish People's Party, the Slovak National Party, the Sweden Democrats, the Lithuanian Order and Justice, IMRO – Bulgarian National Movement, the Dutch Party for Freedom, Alternative for Germany and the German Freedom party.[106][107][108][109] In 2007, the party's then-only MEP was a member of the short-lived Identity, Tradition and Sovereignty grouping in the European Parliament.[106] Outside the EU, it has contacts with Tomislav Nikolić of the Serbian Progressive Party (formerly of the Serbian Radical Party),[100][109][110] the Swiss People's Party, the Israeli Likud,[111][112] the U.S. Republican Party[113] and the United Russia party.[109]

At a conference in 2011, Strache and the new leader of the French National Front, Marine Le Pen, announced deeper cooperation between their parties.[114] Shortly thereafter, the FPÖ attempted to become a member of the Europe for Freedom and Democracy group, but was vetoed by some of its parties.[104] The FPÖ's two MEPs are individual members of the establishing European Alliance for Freedom.[115][116] After the 2014 European elections, the party joined the National Front, the Northern League, Vlaams Belang and the Czech Civic Conservative Party in forming the Movement for a Europe of Nations and Freedom, and participated along with these parties, the Dutch Party for Freedom, the Polish Congress of the New Right and a former member of the UK Independence Party in the Europe of Nations and Freedom parliamentary group.[117]

Election results[edit]

National Council[edit]

National Council of Austria
1956 283,749 6.5%
6 / 165
in opposition
1959 336,110 7.7%
8 / 165
in opposition
1962 313,895 7.0%
8 / 165
in opposition
1966 242,570 5.4%
6 / 165
in opposition
1970 253,425 5.5%
6 / 165
SPÖ Minority
1971 248,473 5.5%
10 / 183
in opposition
1975 249,444 5.4%
10 / 183
in opposition
1979 286,743 6.1%
11 / 183
in opposition
1983 241,789 5.0%
12 / 183
SPÖ-FPÖ Majority
1986 472,205 9.7%
18 / 183
in opposition
1990 782,648 16.6%
33 / 183
in opposition
1994 1,042,332 22.5%
42 / 183
in opposition
1995 1,060,175 21.9%
41 / 183
in opposition
1999 1,244,087 26.9%
52 / 183
ÖVP-FPÖ Majority
2002 491,328 10.0%
18 / 183
ÖVP-FPÖ Majority
2006 519,598 11.0%
21 / 183
in opposition
2008 857,028 17.5%
34 / 183
in opposition
2013 962.313 20.5%
40 / 183
in opposition

European Parliament[edit]

European Parliament
1996 1,044,604 27.5%
6 / 21
1999 655,519 23.4%
5 / 21
2004 157,722 6.3%
1 / 18
2009 364,207 12.7%
2 / 19
2014 556,835 19.7%
4 / 18

Party leaders[edit]

The following is a list of the party leaders of the FPÖ:[76]




  14. ^ Oltermann, Philip (1 July 2016). "Austrian presidential election result overturned and must be held again". The Guardian. Retrieved 1 July 2016. 
  15. ^ Pelinka, 2005, p. 131.
  16. ^ a b c Riedlsperger, 1998, p. 27.
  18. ^ a b c d e f Riedlsperger, 1998, p. 28.
  19. ^ a b c d e Meret, 2010, p. 186.
  28. ^ Riedlsperger, 1998, pp. 28-29.
  30. ^ a b c d Riedlsperger, 1998, p. 29.
  35. ^ a b c Fillitz, 2006, p. 139.
  36. ^ Campbell, 1995, pp. 184-185.
  37. ^ a b c Campbell, 1995, p. 185.
  38. ^ a b c Meret, 2010, p. 187.
  39. ^ Riedlsperger, 1998, pp. 39-40.
  40. ^ Campbell, 1995, pp. 186-187.
  41. ^ Meret, 2010, p. 195.
  42. ^ Meret, 2010, p. 17.
  43. ^ a b Fillitz, 2006, p. 140.
  44. ^ a b Meret, 2010, pp. 17-18.
  46. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 187 and 206.
  47. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 187-188.
  50. ^ a b Meret, 2010, p. 185.
  55. ^ a b Meret, 2010, p. 188.
  71. ^ "Austria to re-run overturned presidential poll in October - BBC News". Retrieved 5 July 2016. 
  72. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 192 and 198.
  73. ^ Fillitz, 2006, p. 138.
  82. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 190-192.
  83. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 192-193.
  84. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 194-196.
  85. ^ a b Meret, 2010, pp. 196-200.
  86. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 198-199.
  89. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 195-196.
  90. ^ Fillitz, 2006, pp. 148-149.
  91. ^ Meret, 2010, p. 198.
  93. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 202-206.
  94. ^ Meret, 2010, pp. 206-208.
  111. ^ "Israeli MK meets Austrian far right chief; irks local Jews". 
  113. ^ "Donald Trump ignores Europe's far-right". 7 April 2016. 
  117. ^ "Members - Europe of Nations and Freedom". 

Works cited[edit]

Further reading[edit]


External links[edit]