On Sunday, March 10, in the municipal elections held in the Austrian federal state of Salzburg, the Communist Party of Austria (KPÖ) made significant gains in the Salzburg city council by securing 10 seats, a jump from just one seat it had previously. The KPÖ are close behind the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) which secured 11 seats.
At the same time, Bernhard Auinger from SPÖ and Kay-Michael Dankl from KPÖ have secured 29.4% and 28% votes respectively, in the first round of mayoral election in Salzburg city and qualified for the runoff scheduled for March 24.
Meanwhile, the ruling Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) has slid to third position in Salzburg city while retaining the majority of municipal councils and mayorships in the state.
The communists also made gains elsewhere in the Salzburg state, having secured three seats in Wals-Siezenheim and Hallein.
Salzburg is the fourth largest city in the country and communists under the leadership of Kay-Michael Dankle have managed to increase their strength multifold in the city within a short period. The party campaigned on issues such as the housing crisis and the cost of living crisis, that the major parties failed to tackle yet.
Earlier, in the elections to the regional assembly (Landtag) of Salzburg held in 2023, the KPÖ+ coalition registered a significant victory by winning four seats and 11.7% of the total votes polled.
The second-largest city in Austria, Graz, has a communist mayor, Elke Kahr, since November 2021. With the latest victory in Salzburg city, Austrian communists are in an upbeat mood and hope to enter the Austrian National Council in the parliamentary elections this year.
Meanwhile, the loss of mayorship in Salzburg proved disheartening for the ÖVP-Green coalition that leads the federal government headed by chancellor Karl Nehammer, before the general elections.
Following the declaration of the election results in Salzburg, the Young Left group affiliated with the KPÖ stated that “this election success in Salzburg did not fall from the sky, but is the result of consistent work by KPÖ Plus in recent years … The upward trend of the communist movement continues.”
The Communist Youth of Austria (KJO) stated that “the election result makes it clear that the people are in support of pro-worker policies, that do not bow to banks and corporations, and also reach the people! The time is up for a communist alternative!”
