Governing with three people, can that work? With a view to Germany, the ÖVP, SPÖ and Neos can despair – or learn the right lessons.
Article from ZEIT Austria
Published in
ZEIT Austria No. 48/2024
What do they have in Berlin? From Austria Seen from this point of view, you have to be surprised at the sheer excitement that is currently prevailing in Germany. Open government dispute, end of coalition, new elections – this is how almost every legislative period ends in this country. The experienced Austrian usually stays completely calm.
But this time it’s worth taking a closer look at the neighbors. What is currently falling apart there could be put together in Austria in the next few weeks and months: a government with three coalition partners. A risk that Austria’s parties have never taken before. The three-way alliance was also a first in Germany. And anything but a recommendation to imitate. No wonder that fundamental questions are now being asked in Austria: Is the fault already in the design? Does such a constellation necessarily fail?