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Is the far right returning to power in Austria? In the country's parliamentary elections held on 29 September, Herbert Kickl's Freedom Party (FPÖ, far-right) led the polls and emerged with with 29.1% (57 seats out of 183), ahead of the People's Party (ÖVP, right), which took 26.4% (52 seats). The Social Democratic Party (SPÖ, center-left) came third (21%, 41 seats), leading only in its stronghold of Vienna.
The FPÖ's success is part of a trend already observed across the continent: far-right parties are already in the majority in the Netherlands, Italy, France and Hungary. One thing worth bearing in mind, however, is that the party founded by former Nazis has already had power before - and found itself embroiled in several political crises that have seriously damaged its reputation in the past. But the question remains: is Austria going to end up with a far-right chancellor? For the time being, neither the ÖVP nor the SPÖ have indicated any intention of forming a coalition with the FPÖ on its own terms.
A conversation with investigative reporters Stefano Valentino and Giorgio Michalopoulos, who have dissected the dark underbelly of green finance for Voxeurop and won several awards for their work.
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