In Werfenweng

A controversial veteran leaves the political stage

Mayor Peter Brandauer has been in office for 35 years. He was voted out of office in Werfenweng before the election and is retiring from politics.

"Peter Brandauer (28) is the youngest mayor in the country" - these were the headlines in 1989. 35 years later, the Brandauer era in the municipality of Werfenweng is now coming to an end. The ÖVP politician, now 63 years old, is stepping down as one of the longest-serving mayors in the whole of Austria. Not entirely voluntarily, rumor has it.

Out of the ÖVP, no list of his own
In three decades, Brandauer has achieved a great deal in the small community. The swimming lake and village square were rebuilt and Werfenweng became a model energy and mobility community. Brandauer was initially praised for the establishment of hotels, but in the recent past this has probably cost him his job. A planned hotel complex at the entrance to the village sparked protests. The FPÖ and Heimatliste therefore resigned from the municipal council in 2021.

Only the ÖVP remained. Before the election, the local party opted for chairman Kurt Daxer as the new mayoral candidate and against Brandauer. There was speculation about a separate "Brandauer list", but instead the veteran is now simply calling it a day.P