The Austrian ex-Chancellor Sebastian Kurz is withdrawing from all offices and thus completely from politics. Kurz, who announced his resignation as Chancellor on October 9, then moved to parliament as a member of parliament, became club chairman (parliamentary group leader) of the ÖVP in the National Council – and remained party leader. According to information from the Austrian media, Interior Minister Karl Nehammer will follow Kurz at the head of the party.
In a statement, the 35-year-old Kurz justified his decision by saying that his involvement in politics had been very time-consuming over the past ten years. There was no time for almost anything else during this time. “Some things have been neglected, especially their own families,” said Kurz. The birth of his child has now shown him that there are also “beautiful and important things outside of politics”.
He always understood politics as a competition for the best ideas. In the past few months, however, it was no longer about the best ideas, so Kurz, but only about defending against accusations and allegations. That was exhausting and reduced the flame of enthusiasm with which he burned for politics. “I don’t want to say that I’ve never done anything wrong. I’m neither a saint nor a criminal,” said Kurz. He is looking forward to the day when he can rebut the allegations against him in court.
Investigations by the Economic and Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (WKStA) against Kurz and his close environment have been ongoing for a long time. On October 6th, police officers searched the house of Kurz employees, in the Chancellery and in the ÖVP headquarters and seized hundreds of pieces of evidence.
The WKStA is investigating the allegation that Kurz and his closest employees paved the way from the Foreign Office to the Chancellery by means of fudged surveys that a pollster commissioned and published in the media by the Fellner brothers, Austria and Oe24, presented. The surveys are said to have been billed by bogus bills that the Ministry of Finance paid. Kurz and his team are therefore suspected of using taxpayers’ money to buy positive reporting and embellished bogus surveys for the ÖVP. In addition, the ex-chancellor and soon-to-be ex-ÖVP boss is also being investigated because of false statements in the Ibiza investigation committee.
“I’m going to leave now and pick up my son and my girlfriend from the hospital.” With these words, Sebastian Kurz says goodbye to politics. The birth of his child is the official reason for withdrawal. He had become aware of “how many beautiful and important things there are outside of politics”. Behind the scenes, it has long been speculated that Kurz would be preparing his move into business. He recently appeared less politically and went on several trips abroad. In his address, the ex-Federal Chancellor sums up his political career and thanks his pioneers.
The ongoing corruption investigations against him receive little mention. Lately defending against accusations and allegations has been his everyday political life. “My passion for politics, which I had tremendously for ten years, has certainly become a little less in this phase.” He is looking forward to the day when he can rebut the allegations against him in court.
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December 2, 2021, 12:41 pm © SZ / vs
Kurz was born in 1986 in Vienna, grew up there and began to get involved as a youth in the youth organization of the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP). He became known in the country when he was elected chairman of the ÖVP youth (federal chairman) in 2009 and the year after he started a shrill “Geilomobil” campaign in the state election campaign in Vienna, which some regarded as sexist.
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In 2011 Kurz became State Secretary for Integration in Austria, and in December 2013 Foreign Minister (here at the inauguration with the then President Heinz Fischer). At the age of 27, he is said to be the youngest foreign minister in the world. In the government, Kurz not only puts pressure on the social democratic coalition partner, but also repeatedly on his party leader and vice chancellor, Reinhold Mitterlehner. The allegations of manipulated opinion polls and bribery of newspaper publishers, which are now being investigated, also stem from this time.
Image: REUTERS
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In 2017, ÖVP boss Mitterlehner threw down in exasperation. Kurz can then be elected as his successor – and tailors the party entirely to his person. The venerable Austrian People’s Party thus becomes “List Sebastian Kurz – the new People’s Party”.
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In October 2017 there will be new elections in Austria, which in the end see the previous Foreign Minister as the beaming winner. The short ÖVP gets 7.5 percentage points more and becomes the strongest force in the National Council. Now Kurz has reached his goal: the 31-year-old can become Federal Chancellor. To this end, he forges a government alliance with the right-wing populist FPÖ under Heinz-Christian Strache.
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When the Ibiza video was published in May 2019, on which Strache promised a supposed Russian oligarch niece government contracts if she supported him in the election campaign, a storm broke over the ÖVP-FPÖ coalition. The alliance ended briefly – after just one and a half years. Only a few days later he was overthrown by a vote of no confidence in the National Council by the opposition. Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen then swore in a non-party expert government. There will be new elections in autumn.
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The Kurz-ÖVP wins the new elections again, it even extends its lead. At the beginning of 2020, Kurz will be re-elected Chancellor – this time by a coalition with the Greens under Werner Kogler (right). It is then the party of the Green Vice Chancellor who, after the house searches, among others in the Ministry of Finance on Friday, de facto calls for Kurz’s head: “Impeccable people” are needed at the top of the government.
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Kurz then announced his resignation, this time he stayed in office for 21 months. He is to be succeeded by the previous Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (right), with whom the Greens want to continue the coalition with the ÖVP. But a career as a politician does not end there for Kurz: The 35-year-old wants to remain party leader and chairman of the parliamentary group in the National Council. So Kurz is withdrawing from the government, but remains a central man of the black-green coalition for the time being. A few weeks later, after the birth of his son, he finally leaves politics completely.
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December 2, 2021, 12:41 pm © SZ / vs
Just a few weeks ago, parliament unanimously lifted the ex-chancellor’s immunity. Kurz himself and the party had supported the move in order to enable a quick clarification, as it is said.
In the new year he wants to dedicate himself to new professional tasks, Kurz said. He did not elaborate on what these are. In fact, there had been speculation for a long time about a change of the politician to the economy. Several trips abroad, including to Ireland, and his lack of visibility on the political stage in Austria supported these rumors. But first Kurz wanted to pick up his girlfriend and son from the hospital.
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