He was at the Hofburg

Kern’s secret plans with the First Lady and the government

Christian Kern's team already had well-developed plans for restructuring the party—and the government.(Bild: APA/Georg Hochmuth)

It wasn't just a figment of the imagination after all: for weeks, former Chancellor Christian Kern considered entering the ring against SPÖ leader Andreas Babler at the party conference on March 7. In the end, he didn't do it, but plans for the restructuring of the SPÖ – and the government – were already well advanced. A meeting at the Hofburg – and a position for Austria's First Lady included...

Kern did not run for party chair, but the Kern split in the SPÖ remained. Too many influential Reds had come out in support of the former chancellor, the criticism of incumbent party leader Babler was too clear, and the internal personnel debate, which some found so "annoying," was too serious. After the former chancellor's withdrawal, the "Krone" gained insights into the well-developed plans surrounding the former chancellor's return from countless conversations.

"Plan C," as it was called among Kern's confidants in reference to his former "Plan A," was supposed to stand for "Christian's comeback" and be implemented after the party conference on March 7. A political pipe dream that will never come to life. But also a pipe dream that was already built on a broad foundation.

Christian Kern's team already had well-developed plans for restructuring the party—and the government.(Bild: APA/Georg Hochmuth)

Meeting with Federal President
At the end of January, the former chancellor even visited the Hofburg, where he discussed his plans with Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen. When asked by the "Krone" about the meeting, the presidential office responded with a noncommittal but telling statement that it only publicly confirms appointments that are open to the media. However, this does not constitute a denial of the non-public appointment.

According to information obtained by the Krone, Kern discussed a specific scenario with the president over a cigarette and one or two cups of coffee, in which Austria's First Lady Doris Schmidauer played no small part in Kern's considerations.

Red government reshuffle
As Kern's long-time companions and confidants report to the "Krone," his favorite personnel scenario after the Reds took power would have looked like this: Kern himself had considered securing the Ministry of Finance or the Ministry of Transport—and was clearly leaning toward the latter. In exchange, the incumbent transport minister, Peter Hanke, would have been given the important media and sports portfolio, which Babler currently holds along with the cultural agenda.

Schmidauer, who was, after all, managing director of the Green Party's parliamentary club, was to be offered the position of state secretary for these cultural agendas.

Drozda instead of Seltenheim
At least in retrospect, it is controversial that Federal Party Manager Klaus Seltenheim would also have had to leave with Babler. According to Kern's plans, he was to be replaced by Thomas Drozda, a long-time acquaintance and confidant of Kern, who had already held this office under Pamela Rendi-Wagner and had to step down after the election defeat in 2019. Drozda's deputy should have been – as a gesture to the women in the SPÖ – the federal managing director, Ruth Manninger.