Kickl calls for snap election and promises retirement at 65

Freedom Party (FPÖ) leader Herbert Kickl called for an early national election and promised a retirement guarantee at 65 during a visit to Bregenz on Friday, ORF reported. Addressing a packed hall, he said his party had led national opinion polls for months and would enter government after the next election.

Kickl said the three-party coalition was finished and argued that a leadership dispute within the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) had damaged its image and raised questions about the government’s ability to act.

Vorarlberg FPÖ chairman Christof Bitschi also called for an early election, saying the country needed a new government as soon as possible because the current one had shown it could not do the job.

The government has said it intends to continue in office. The next regular parliamentary election is due in 2029.

Kickl also criticised the government’s asylum policy, climate measures and support for Ukraine. He said people should be able to stop working at 65 after a lifetime of work. Other themes in his speech included strengthening families and a radical change in asylum policy.