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Austria’s parliament has removed Chancellor Sebastian Kurz from office in a special parliamentary session.
His previous coalition ally, the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ), backed the no-confidence motions brought by the opposition Social Democrats (SPÖ).
The FPÖ had become embroiled in a political scandal caused by a secret video, which ended the coalition.
Austria’s president named the finance minister Hartwig Löger as the interim chancellor.
In a televised address, President Alexander Van der Bellen said the constitution mandated all offices must be filled “even in a transitional period”.
Mr Löger – a member of Mr Kurz’s centre-right People’s Party (ÖVP) – will serve until a new transitional government can be appointed ahead of elections expected in September.
Mr Kurz, head of the conservative Austrian People’s Party, is the first chancellor in post-war Austrian history to lose a confidence vote.
When he was elected in 2017, he was at 31 the world’s youngest state leader.
What happened in parliament?
The SPÖ brought forward the two no-confidence votes – one against Mr Kurz and the other against the government.
While they control only 52 of the 183-seat lower house, the FPÖ – which holds 51 seats – agreed to back the motions, which needed only a simple majority to pass.
The left-wing environmentalist JETZT party also voted to oust the chancellor and his government, although the liberal NEOS party reportedly backed Mr Kurz in a bid to avoid instability.
Image copyright
Reuters
Mr Kurz did well in Sunday’s EU elections but it was not enough to save him
Mr Kurz’s surprise strong showing in Sunday’s European Union elections – with a projected 35% of the vote – was not enough to save him.
Speaking after the confidence vote, Mr Kurz pledged to support an interim government and insisted he and the ÖVP had “guaranteed stability” in Austria.
He has repeatedly promoted himself as a bastion of stability amid the political turmoil.
The parties ranged against Mr Kurz appeared to believe he should shoulder some of the blame for the fall of the coalition.
The Social Democrats say he should never have allied himself with the FPÖ in the first place. The FPÖ is still smarting from having had Mr Kurz replace all of its ministers with technocrats.
What’s the video scandal about?
It has widely been labelled “Ibiza-gate”, after the Spanish island where the video was recorded.
It was secretly filmed in 2017 just weeks before the election which saw both the FPÖ and Chancellor Kurz’s party perform well.
In the footage, released by German media, Freedom Party leader and vice-chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache can be seen relaxing and drinking for hours at a villa with FPÖ parliament group leader Johann Gudenus, while they meet a woman, purported to be the niece of a Russian oligarch.
Mr Strache appears to propose offering her public contracts if she buys a large stake in the Austrian newspaper Kronen Zeitung – and makes it support the Freedom Party.
He is heard suggesting that a number of journalists would have to be “pushed” from the newspaper, and that he wants to “build a media landscape like [Viktor] Orban” – referring to Hungary’s nationalist leader.
Mr Strache stood down hours after the video emerged.
Image copyright
EPA
Heinz-Christian Strache resigned after the footage emerged
President Van der Bellen then fired FPÖ Interior Minister Herbert Kickl at the request of Mr Kurz.
The move prompted the FPÖ’s other ministers to resign in solidarity.
Despite the scandal, Austrian news agency APA reports that Mr Strache could possibly take a seat in the European parliament.
The former vice chancellor had remained at the bottom of his party’s election list for the European elections after his resignation. But under Austrian law he could take one of FPÖ’s predicted three seats if enough people supported him as a candidate.
It is unclear if Mr Strache will take a seat.
Austrian leader faces removal in confidence vote
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