After the FPÖ decision

Styrian SPÖ on the opposition bench for the first time

Black day for Anton Lang. It is questionable whether he will remain party leader in the opposition.(Bild: Sepp Pail)

A turning point for the Styrian Red Party: After FPÖ leader Mario Kunasek announced on Sunday that he would enter into government negotiations with the ÖVP, the SPÖ has been relegated to the opposition bench in the state parliament for the first time. 

It is a heavy blow for Styrian social democracy: for the first time in its history, the SPÖ has to make do with the opposition bench in the state parliament. In the days following the election, the chances of a blue-red coalition did not seem bad at all. Important SPÖ politicians such as the mayor of Leoben, Kurt Wallner, showed a clear willingness to participate in government under an FPÖ provincial governor, Mario Kunasek. Initially, the Blue Party even seemed to be leaning more towards the SPÖ, as was reported in party circles.

But the blue-red experiment has come to nothing. The big question now is whether Anton Lang will continue to lead the Reds as party leader in opposition - or who else will do it. One obvious candidate would be club chairman Hannes Schwarz.

When asked by "Krone" on Sunday evening, Lang, who is still deputy governor, was not yet prepared to comment. It remains to be seen whether a personnel decision will be made on Monday.

In an initial reaction, SPÖ regional managing director Florian Seifter spoke of "a missed opportunity" and said: "They are obviously not prepared to break with the old patterns and are choosing the easiest route to a partner with whom cooperation at federal level and in other federal states is already commonplace."