"Should continue to fight"

ÖVP state secretary comes to Schilling’s defense

Green Party top candidate Lena Schilling, who has come under pressure due to serious accusations from her private life, is receiving support from her political rivals. After the 23-year-old was described as the victim of a "political witches' kitchen" by FPÖ top candidate Harald Vilimsky last week and he suspected the SPÖ was behind it, ÖVP State Secretary for Youth Claudia Plakolm has now also come to Schilling's defense - at least indirectly.

"The most important thing in politics is to be able to discuss substantive issues objectively. That's what I expect," said Plakolm on Monday in Brussels in response to the question of whether she saw "traces of a certain hostility towards young people" in the case. However, she did not mention Schilling by name.

"Keep fighting for what you want to implement"
"In my eyes, there is no place for personal backgrounds that are reduced to one gender or age," the ÖVP politician clarified. It is difficult to be personally attacked in times like these, said the State Secretary for Youth when asked for advice for Schilling.

"The most important thing is to always focus on the content and continue to fight for what you want to implement."

The Green Party leader identified a "dirty bucket campaign" surrounding EU top candidate Lena Schilling.(Bild: APA/Robert Jäger)

Whether Schilling is still credible is up to her supporters to decide, says Plakolm. Recently, however, even within the FPÖ, voices have been raised in solidarity with the young Green.

New accusations
23-year-old Lena Schilling has been under constant fire for days because, at least according to "Standard" research, she has been spreading untruths and is therefore not qualified to be a top EU candidate. New allegations have recently been published, with private feuds of all kinds coming to light - for example, she is said to have accused a leading politician (of a competitor) of domestic violence.

A complaint has also been filed with the public prosecutor's office - by a law student from Graz ...

"Organized campaign"
As is well known, a small "Schilling special commission" was set up in the "Standard" to draw up a "psychogram" with 50 people from Schilling's circle. We can only speculate about the background. In any case, the Greens see this as an "organized campaign". According to club leader Sigrid Maurer (allegedly disparaged by Schilling herself), this is aimed directly at young women.