Lost party confidence

Mayor resigned just before the election

Tough decision by party colleagues: But not top candidate - the resignation of Heldenberg's mayor followed.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Martin Jöchl; ÖVP)

The mayor of the municipality of Heldenberg was surprised to hear that he had been rejected as the ÖVP's top candidate for the upcoming municipal council elections. Spontaneous reaction: resignation as of November 14! Meanwhile, Deputy Thomas Glanz is already preparing new elections for November 29.

"It's not exactly a good time." The official interim mayor of Heldenberg from November 15, still ÖVP deputy mayor Thomas Glanz, now has a lot of work ahead of him. Only recently, November 29 was set as the date for a new mayoral election and preparations are now underway.

Distrust "came gradually"
According to reports, the development against the previous mayor Günther Brandstätter has been apparent in the ÖVP of the municipality in the Hollabrunn district since the spring. The mayor's resignation was the spontaneous reaction to his - for the protagonist apparently surprising - deselection as his party's top candidate for the upcoming municipal elections. "It was a gradual process," explains still-Vice Mayor Glanz. In general, however, it is said that the 16 local councillors felt less and less involved in decision-making processes.

For Brandstätter, the case is closed in any case, which is underlined by his comment to the "Krone" newspaper in response to an inquiry: "No, I won't be putting up my own list under any circumstances."