Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen announced on Wednesday that he will not, for the time being, invite any party to form a government following the country’s parliamentary elections.
Van der Bellen now expects the leaders of the three largest parties – the Freedom Party (FPÖ), which made history by winning the most votes on 29 September, the People’s Party (ÖVP), and the Social Democrats (SPÖ) – to “reliably clarify what sort of cooperation might be possible.”
The move is aimed at breaking the current political stalemate. The parties have until the end of next week to reach an agreement.
In recent days, Van der Bellen has met with leaders of all five parties that entered parliament following the September 29 parliamentary elections, beginning with FPÖ leader Herbert Kickl last Friday.
He continued discussions on Monday and Tuesday, meeting the current Chancellor and ÖVP head Karl Nehammer, SPÖ leader Andreas Babler, NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger, and Green Party head Werner Kogler, the outgoing Vice-Chancellor in the ÖVP-Green coalition government.
In Austria, the president is responsible for tasking party leaders with forming a government after elections. Traditionally, the leader of the winning party is chosen, though this is not written into the constitution. Van der Bellen has hinted he may not automatically hand the job to Kickl, despite the FPÖ’s historic victory.
All parties have previously stated they wouldn’t enter into a coalition with the FPÖ.
Leaders described their talks with the president, which generally lasted around 90 minutes, as “pleasant,” “very good,” and “trusting.”
Speculation suggests the most likely outcome could be Austria’s first three-way coalition, involving the ÖVP, SPÖ, and either NEOS or the Greens, as well-connected journalist Michael Fleischhacker hinted to The International on election night.
After her meeting, NEOS leader Meinl-Reisinger reaffirmed her willingness to “work on reforms in a future-oriented and energetic manner” and to engage in talks with the SPÖ and ÖVP.