Talks continue between Kickl and Stocker
Freedom Party (FPÖ) leader Herbert Kickl and ÖVP leader Christian Stocker are said to be becoming even more serious about talks to form a new Austrian government.
According to the Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung, Kickl and Stocker will be meeting again on Thursday afternoon along with “two trusted people” for more in-depth discussions.
Those people are director of the Freedom Party’s parliamentary club Norbert Nemeth and member of the Landtag of Lower Austria, Reinhard Teufel, who will be Herbert Kickl’s “plus two”.
Christian Stocker will participate in the talks alongside Austrian Federal Economic Chamber president Harald Mahrer and parliamentary leader of the ÖVP, August Wöginger.
If any progress is made in their most recent talks, they will meet again tomorrow (Friday) with the budget then becoming one of the main issues discussed.
ÖVP has more to lose than the FPÖ?
Herbert Kickl was tasked to form a new government by Austrian President Alexander van der Bellen earlier in the week, after he had previously given that task to the ÖVP — who then failed.
As Austria has not had a new government since the election in late September, 2024 placed the FPÖ in the number 1 spot, at this point, it is more important for the ÖVP to compromise than it is for the FPÖ.
After all, if the two Austrian political parties cannot come to some kind of agreement, it appears a new election is likely to be the next step.
Considering the most recent polls show the FPÖ gaining even more support throughout Austria, if those polls are correct, that election could award the right-wing party even more seats and cause the ÖVP and other parties to win less.
Not a result the increasingly unpopular ÖVP probably wants.
Let’s see then how the latest round of talks in Vienna play out.
