Austria: Stress test for Chancellor Karl Nehammer

Where Austria ends in the west lies the small federal state of Vorarlberg.

The region is beautiful, the dialect is Alemannic, in terms of mentality one often feels closer to neighboring Baden-Württemberg than to distant Vienna.

"Ländle" and people have so far been considered diligent and particularly correct.

But at least the People's Party (ÖVP), which has always been dominant, has lost this good reputation.

At the end of March, STANDARD made it known that the Wirtschaftsbund – a sub-organization of the ÖVP – had passed on larger sums to the state party.

Since then there have been even more revelations, the cause is developing into a political avalanche.

Funds in the millions have discreetly flowed into the ÖVP, it is about the suspicion of illegal party financing.

Prime Minister Markus Wallner now admits that he knew about the payments.

Failed Putin visit and drink affair

It is doubted whether he acted correctly himself: in an affidavit, an entrepreneur accused the governor of having personally wedged advertisements for a party-affiliated medium – consideration was said to have been promised.

Wallner denies it and feels defamed, but his post is shaky.

Ultimately, the head of government only had two options, writes the editor-in-chief of the Kronen Zeitung: "Either he goes himself, or he is dismissed."

That brings us to Wallner's federal party leader, Chancellor Karl Nehammer.

So far, he prefers not to say anything about the affair, which not only the powerful "Krone" but also the daily newspaper "Die Presse" criticizes: "The Wallner cause is also a Nehammer cause," writes the conservative newspaper.

Earlier this year, Nehammer claimed his party had no corruption problem.

The allegation was already absurd at the time, especially since well-known party friends are being investigated.

But in view of the events in Vorarlberg, the Chancellor is once again disgraced.

Other things also weigh on him: there is his visit to Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin, which looked like an unsuccessful attempt at profiling.

There is the farce about bodyguards having a drink with his wife Katharina Nehammer, which ended with the heavily intoxicated officer crashing out of a parking space.

In the state associations, sub-organizations are tugging at the chancellor, who is also being left by experienced staff, the polls are tending towards 20 percent - a disaster for the conservatives.

Nehammer and the ÖVP are in a stress test – the outcome is uncertain.

Meanwhile, longing for Sebastian Kurz is spreading within the party.

OVP veteran Andreas Khol explains that he shouldn't have resigned as chancellor in October because of the corruption allegations.

And Wolfgang Fellner, the publisher of the tabloid »Österreich« even speculates: »Is Nehammer throwing away in frustration?

Will Kurz be back in the fall?”

What the media zampano fails to mention: he himself is considered a suspect in corruption proceedings in which Kurz is also involved.

The investigators suspect that surveys were doctored in favor of Kurz and adjusted accordingly before publication - the whole thing is said to have been paid for by taxpayer-financed advertisements in Fellner's media empire.

On May 14, Nehammer wants to be officially elected chairman at a party conference.

Until then, the co-governing Greens are likely to remain largely silent with regard to Vorarlberg.

The fact that they largely refrained from criticizing their coalition partner earned them the accusation of doing everything to stay in power.

But one thing can be taken for granted: Kurz's return to the Chancellery should not be possible with the Greens.

Social Media Moment of the Week:

These days, a video of the controversial parliamentary speaker Wolfgang Sobotka (ÖVP) is causing a stir on social networks.

With a view to the financial affair of his Vorarlberg party friends, he reveals a bizarre understanding of the law.

Those caught should pay taxes, says Sobotka - but one should stop "criminalizing" the matter.

The head of parliament calls for impunity for tax fraud?

Apparently a lot is possible in Austria at the moment.

Stories we recommend you today:

• Only Chancellor's Wife or Shadow Chancellor?

  Podcast Inside Austria about Katharina Nehammer.

• Suspected friendly economy: hearty dispute about the Vienna Oktoberfest.

• "Toxic sponsorship": A company that is said to be close to the Kremlin sponsors the Salzburg Festival.

Have a healthy week

Oliver Das Gupta

Author for SPIEGEL and STANDARD

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