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Social Democratic Party, People’s Party win parliamentary election in Austria

ts partner in the ruling coalition, the Austrian People’s Party, got 23.8% votes
Photo EPA/ROLAND SCHLAGER
Photo EPA/ROLAND SCHLAGER

VIENNA, September 29 (Itar-Tass) - Social Democratic Party won Sunday’s parliamentary election in Austria by getting 27.1% votes.

Its partner in the ruling coalition, the Austrian People’s Party, got 23.8% votes.

Upon the counting of almost 100% ballots, the coalition has retained the majority of seats at the National Council, the Austrian Interior Ministry said at its official website.

Austrian President Heinz Fischer made public his readiness to support the two-party coalition in spite of the fact Sunday’s election proved to be the least successful for both of leading parties in the contemporary history of the country.

As Fischer commented on the results of voting in an interview with the Austrian public television, he said his preferences still stayed with the coalition in spite of the falling levels of public support for it.

He believes that the country’s leading politicians are able to draw correct lessons from their own mistakes.

Fischer also said he would begin talks next week with the leaders of the Social Democrats and the People’s Party on forming the cabinet of ministers.

Preliminary estimates show that the Social Democrats will get 53 seats at the National Council and the People’s Party will get 46 seats. The Freedom Party of Austria, which unexpectedly almost caught up with the People’s Party by getting 21.4%, can hope for 42 mandates.

The Greens managed to rally support of 11.5% voters and are now bound to get 22 seats, which marks a certain improvement on the results of the previous parliamentary election.

Team Stronach and the new political party NEOS turned up with 5.8% and 4.8% respectively and my hope for eleven and nine seats.

The Interior Ministry, which has an official duty to organize federal elections in the country, said that the final results would be released Thursday, October 3, after the counting of all the ballots that the Austrian voters had sent by postal services.

The Ministry is due to publish the official results October 16.