In Austria, the Social Democrats change leaders after an ‘Excel spreadsheet error’

Only forty-eight hours after the election of its new president, the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) was forced to admit, on Monday 5 June, that “Excel spreadsheet error” has led to “Reverse” The results of the vote in its conference, which was organized on Saturday. “Technical error occurred”Confused, Mikaela Grubisa, chairwoman of the electoral commission, explained during a press conference held to introduce her. “apologies” Announcing the new results.

Initially elected with approximately 53% of the 603 delegates’ votes, Hans-Peter Doskozil was finally declared a loser. A good player in spite of this confusion, he immediately recognized this new consequence and confirmed that he would retire from national political life to focus on the region he governed, Burgenland, in the east of this central European country. In his place was elected Andreas Babler, 50, mayor of a small town of 17,000 south of Vienna, who officially received 47% of the vote on Saturday.

evoke a “low point” In the history of SPÖ, the representative of the left wing of the party preferred to ask for a final “tell” before taking over his training. Fear was already general in Austria. How could the first opposition party in a well-organized country make such a mistake? “I am amazed. Counting 600 ballots with two names is a very simple task. I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.”which was launched on O1 Radio, Robert Stein, former head of electoral authorities at the Ministry of the Interior, is also a member of the SPÖ.

Immigration Division

Many commentators saw this humiliating episode as a symbol of the problems the party is going through. Having long dominated Austrian politics, he is as torn on the line to carry as many of his European counterparts since losing power in 2017. A candidate who was elected for only 48 hours, Mr. Doskozil is a former police officer and a hardliner on immigration issues. He was a strong supporter of the Danish Social Democrats, who have a very restrictive immigration policy, and he ruled his region for several years with the support of the far right.

On the contrary, Mr. Babler, who is known to be elected to a municipality that hosts the largest refugee center in Austria, has campaigned by defending the idea that his country needsLabor migration. “Otherwise, we’ll be finished in a few months.”. Who are the people who wash the dishes in the restaurant?He pleaded in a fiery speech to the conference, ruling out any alliance with the far right.

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