In less than 24 hours, Austrian voters will elect a new government. Although the results are almost certain not to yield a majority for any new party, the nationalist Austrian Freedom Party will likely get the most votes it has ever received and be the closest it has ever come to power.
In terms of issues Americans care about, the Freedom Party, should it come to power, would almost certainly push hard for closer ties to Russia's Vladimir Putin and a reduction of and possible end to aid to Ukraine.
Considered on the verge of extinction just seven years ago amid a scandal involving taking bribes from Russia, the Freedom Party has rebounded dramatically under dynamic new leader Herbert Kickl and on an agenda of limiting immigration and slamming the other parties for supporting strict measures to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a recent Austria Presse Agentur poll of likely voters nationwide, the Freedom Party tops the race for seats in the Austrian parliament with 27.1%, followed by the conservative People's Party at 24.7%, and the Socialists at 20.6%.
The Green Party, which is the junior partner in government with the People's Party, is running fifth in the poll with 8.3%.
"Kickl has campaigned hard on 'remigration' and a 'Fortress Europe,'" Hannelore Veit, author and former Washington, D.C., bureau chief for Austrian Television, told Newsmax. "True, we have a problem: In some schools in Vienna's working-class districts, up to 80% students are not German native speakers.
"Kickl calls for stopping immigration and says only 'good and hard-working people' are welcome. He wants to cut social benefits for immigrants and stop accepting refugees at least for the time being."
Veit also recalled that Kickl and the Freedom Party opposed strict COVID-19 regulations imposed by the government, which many saw as too restrictive, and co-organized protests in 2021-22, which drew substantial crowds.
"In regional elections in June," observed the Financial Times, "the FPO was the most popular political party among 18- to 29-year olds" who are most affected by COVID-19 restrictions.
Kickl is the lone party leader who calls for better relations with Russia and Putin. Moreover, he flatly says there must be no more support for Ukraine.
As in Germany, support for Ukraine has been fading, and many Austrians blame their inflation on the government's support for Ukraine. Austria does not support Ukraine with arms, but OKs transport of arms by other countries through Austrian territory and has so far given an estimated $280 million in humanitarian aid.
Most significantly, there are an estimated 90,000 Ukrainian expatriates living in Austria, and roughly 56,000 receive government assistance of some kind.
Polls notwithstanding, Kickl's path to becoming what he calls "the people's chancellor" is not easy. Even if the Freedom Party is the top vote-getter Sunday, Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen has made it clear he will not automatically ask Kickl to form a government.
Van der Bellen's argument is that he does not want an anti-European party to lead the government. Kickl has been highly critical of the European Union and opposes participation in the European Sky Shield Initiative, a missile defense project launched by Germany.
Whatever happens at the polls Sunday, it appears likely that Washington, Brussels, and Moscow will be watching Vienna closely in the weeks ahead.
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.
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