Austrian President Invites Parties for Talks on Forming Cabinet
(Bloomberg) -- Austria’s president will start discussions with leaders of the largest parties about forming a government on Friday.
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Alexander Van der Bellen will first host Herbert Kickl, the head of the far-right Freedom Party, which won the most votes at Sunday’s elections, his office said in a statement Wednesday. He will meet incumbent Chancellor Karl Nehammer of the conservatives and social-democrat chief Andreas Babler on Monday.
The president has said he will keep an open approach to the talks, and parties will need to show they can secure a parliamentary majority before he invites any of them into office.
All competitors have vowed not to form a government with Kickl’s involvement, bringing momentum toward a centrist coalition.
A combination of Austria’s two main traditional parties used to be the country’s default arrangement, making up more than half of its governments since World War II. Coalition negotiations have traditionally taken months, not weeks, so the talks could stretch into next year.
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