After the "wind vote"

ÖVP: Waldhäusl should resign in Waidhofen!

Three quarters of a year before the local council elections, the stormy debates following the wind power referendum are now finally shifting to the political level. The ÖVP demands that Waldhäusl leave municipal politics.(Bild: Krone KREATIV, Daniel Scharinger)

After the referendum on wind turbine projects in five communities in the Waldviertel region of Waidhofen an der Thaya, the first storm is brewing for the local council elections: ÖVP district chairman Eduard Köck is calling for the resignation of state parliament president Gottfried Waldhäusl!

Things are now getting bizarre in the home district of the second president of the provincial parliament, Gottfried Waldhäusl, who also sits as a councillor for the FPÖ in the Waidhofen an der Thaya municipal parliament: Following the referendum in five municipalities in the region on three wind farms, the ÖVP district chairman and the mayor of the neighboring municipality of Thaya, Eduard Köck, is now calling on Waldhäusl to resign.

"Not capable of winning a majority"
Why? "Because he said quite clearly that there would be no wind turbines with him," the ÖVP politician rants. The vote there was 51.8% in favor of local wind power, with a turnout of 64.9%. Köck continues: "Waldhäusl wants to run for mayor. But since his way was not chosen, he has to step down." 

"Köck should learn to do the math"
When confronted with this, however, the President of the Provincial Parliament reacted calmly: "In Waidhofen, the ÖVP, SPÖ, Greens and UBL all spoke out in favor of wind power and achieved this narrow result. Köck should learn to calculate," Waldhäusl directs his attention to the neighboring municipality of Waidhofen an der Thaya-Land, where the municipal council was unanimously in favor of wind power, but 54.4 percent of citizens were against it. "If he wants to ask anyone to resign, then please ask his own ÖVP mayor there," Waldhäusl counters coldly.