BERLIN (AP) — Austria's chancellor says he expects an early election this fall as his coalition partner mulls its future leadership.

Austria is governed by an often bad-tempered alliance of Chancellor Christian Kern's center-left Social Democrats and the center-right Austrian People's Party. The latter's leader, outgoing Vice Chancellor Reinhold Mitterlehner, announced his resignation last week amid persistent party infighting.

People's Party officials are to meet Sunday to consider their next move. The likeliest new leader, Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, says Austria should hold an early election rather than keeping Kern's coalition going until the vote is scheduled in late 2018.

Kern has said he wants to keep the coalition in place until then. But he told ORF television Sunday: "I assume that there will certainly be an election this fall."