The Austrian Chancellor announced his resignation following the failure of coalition negotiations.

Following the failure of coalition formation talks in Austria, Chancellor Karl Nehammer announced on Saturday evening his intention to resign from the position of head of government and leader of the conservative ÖVP party, as reported by the dpa news agency. Earlier that same day, the Chancellor's party attempted to hold coalition negotiations with the Social Democrats, but this effort also ended unsuccessfully.

“In the coming days, I will resign as Chancellor and leader of the Austrian People's Party and facilitate a peaceful transition,” Nehammer stated in a video announcement published on platform X on Saturday, January 4, following negotiations with the Social Democrats.

After the liberal NEOS party withdrew from tripartite coalition talks with the ÖVP and the Social Democratic SPÖ on Friday, the ÖVP and SPÖ attempted to negotiate a two-party government on Saturday. However, their negotiations ended in failure, according to Nehammer.

“It is clear that destructive forces within the SPÖ have prevailed,” said the ÖVP leader. He emphasized that his party would not agree to any program that would harm the economy and financial indicators.

At the same time, Nehammer noted that he is not prepared for coalition talks with the right-wing FPÖ party led by Herbert Kickl. “I firmly believe that radicals do not offer solutions to any problems,” he assessed.

Despite the victory in the parliamentary elections in September by the pro-Russian Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ), led by pro-Russian politician Herbert Kickl, the President of Austria entrusted the task of forming a government to Nehammer. He justified this decision by stating that Christian Democrats and Social Democrats firmly excluded the possibility of entering government with Kickl as Prime Minister. These groups accuse the FPÖ of extremism, close ties with Russia, attempts to limit the role of women in public life, and the use of rhetoric that deepens social divides.

dpa notes that according to recent polls, if new elections were held in Austria, the pro-Russian FPÖ party could expect an even stronger victory than in September.

Following the parliamentary elections on September 29, 2024, the far-right Freedom Party of Austria led by Herbert Kickl emerged victorious. He is referred to as the “Austrian Orbán” due to his pro-Russian and anti-Ukrainian policies. Kickl's party received the highest share of voter support at 29.2%. The Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) led by Karl Nehammer came in second with 26.2%. The Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) garnered 21%, while the Greens and NEOS received 8% and 9%, respectively.