"Those are just rumors"

After “Krone” Interview: SPÖ Completely Paralyzed

Will Andreas Babler face competition? The Vice Chancellor apparently isn’t quite ready to accept it yet.(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

Gerhard Zeiler wants to replace Andreas Babler as head of the SPÖ, as he announced in a high-profile “Krone” interview. Social Democrats across the country are closely watching to see how his plans will unfold. The day after the interview, however, party officials remained silent.

On “Sports Day,” the current SPÖ leader tried to take the situation in stride. Speaking yesterday at Vienna’s Heldenplatz, Andreas Babler referred succinctly to “rumors” currently circulating and spoke in abstract terms about someone who “might be putting himself forward as a potential candidate.” He was referring to Gerhard Zeiler, who had publicly stated in the “Krone” that he intends to replace Babler and lead the SPÖ out of its “historic low.” Babler did not mention the media executive by name.

Otherwise, too, it’s conspicuously quiet within the party. Outwardly, at least; internally, things are bubbling. But even those who usually don’t mince words are now keeping quiet.

“Learned from the ‘Krone’”
The message from Salzburg, Lower Austria, and Tyrol is that they want to conduct the debate “not publicly, but internally.” Silence is even coming from Carinthia, where Governor Daniel Fellner recently fired sharp public criticism at the federal government and had secretly met with Zeiler as recently as July. Many point out that they only found out about it from the “Krone.”

Read the full “Krone” interview with Gerhard Zeiler—in which he explains why he wouldn’t take a single cent for a political position and outlines his future scenarios for the Social Democratic Party—exclusively here on KronePLUS!

Zeiler Is a “Serious Figure”
The labor union and the party’s youth wing are also keeping a low profile; only Vorarlberg’s state leader, Mario Leiter, has explicitly thrown his support behind Babler. A clear “no” to Zeiler also came from Burgenland, though not out of loyalty to Babler. Flattering words, however, came from Styria, where Zeiler was described as a “serious figure.” Now everyone is waiting to see what Michael Ludwig will do and where he stands. Zeiler had recently met with the mayor of Vienna twice. When asked yesterday whether he would face off against the challenger at a party convention, Babler declined to answer.