FPÖ sees federal coalition collapsing after 2027 election gains

Austria’s Freedom Party (FPÖ) says the federal three-party coalition could collapse if it makes major gains in the 2027 state elections in Upper Austria and Tyrol, ORF reported.

“If the FPÖ gains substantially or even provides the state governors, then the coalition is dead,” Wels Mayor Andreas Rabl said at a joint news conference in Innsbruck on Wednesday. Tyrol FPÖ leader Markus Abwerzger said he was “100 percent” convinced.

Abwerzger calls for agreement with Mattle

Abwerzger described the elections next autumn as two historic votes in which the FPÖ could have its first opportunity to provide the governor in either state. He said he feared that a second-place Austrian People’s Party could still do everything possible to retain the governor’s office in Tyrol.

Abwerzger again called on Tyrol Governor Anton Mattle of the Austrian People’s Party to sign a notarised agreement stating that the party finishing first would provide the governor.

FPÖ compares Wels and Innsbruck

The news conference also promoted what the FPÖ called the “Wels success model”. Abwerzger said Rabl had taken over Wels in 2015 with more than 70 million euros in debt, while the city of around 65,000 people was now effectively debt-free.

Markus Lassenberger, an Innsbruck FPÖ city councillor without executive responsibilities, contrasted Wels with what he described as the poor example of Innsbruck. He said the Tyrolean capital would end the year with 220 million euros in debt, equivalent to a burden of 1,700 euros per resident.

Lassenberger said Innsbruck needed a change of direction at the 2030 election, with him as mayor.