After the National Council election

FPÖ mayoral candidate wins first ballot

Mayoral elections were held in Goldwörth on Sunday.(Bild: Kronen Zeitung)

The first ballot after the National Council elections ended on Sunday in Goldwörth (Upper Austria) with a blue victory. Because the previous mayor had resigned, a new mayoral election was necessary in the previously ÖVP-governed municipality. FPÖ candidate Thomas Prihoda (42.8%) won the first round of voting. He has to face Bernhard Hofer (32.01%) from the People's Party in the run-off.

The FPÖ also has reason to celebrate in the first ballot after the National Council elections: its mayoral candidate in the previously ÖVP-governed municipality of Goldwörth in the Urfahr-Umgebung district, Thomas Prihoda, received the most votes in the first ballot with 42.8%. He was followed by Bernhard Hofer (ÖVP) with 32.01 percent and SPÖ candidate Franz Braterschofsky (25.19 percent). Voter turnout on Sunday was just under 82 percent.

As no one won an absolute majority, there will be a blue-black duel for the 800-inhabitant municipality in the run-off. Prihoda and Hofer will then have to face the mayoral election again. In the coming days, they will probably vie for the vacant votes of the defeated SPÖ candidate.

Surprising resignation
The fact that the mayor of Goldwörth has to be re-elected at all is due to the surprising resignation of former mayor Johann Müllner (ÖVP). He stepped down after 16 years in office in June of this year. "I don't want to be accused of being mayor. If I am, then I want to stand trial as a normal person, or just end the proceedings," Müllner (66) told "Krone" at the time.

Proceedings still ongoing
Citizens had reported him to the municipal supervisory authority. It is a matter of differing legal opinions, the cause of which dates back to 2013. At that time, the flood of the century inundated the district of Hagenau and the families living there were relocated. Gradually, and especially during the coronavirus pandemic, many used the formerly flooded land as a recreational area, sometimes setting up caravans on it. This is precisely what the advertisers believe is illegal.

However, it is still completely unclear whether proceedings will actually be brought against the former mayor. The allegations are still being investigated.