Emmeka
29th March 2013, 11:39
I read the other day that in the city of Graz - Austria's second largest city - the Communist Party of Austria was doing very well for itself, after having been unrepresented anywhere in the country since 1970.
Apparently in 2003 they spontaneously won 20% of the popular vote, which dipped down to 11% in 2008 but rebounded to 20% in 2012, as you can see here. The party currently has 10 / 48 seats in the Grazer Gemeinderat and is second only to the conservative ÖVP. They also have 2 seats in the Landtag, the parliament of the state of Steiermark, both seats being won in the electoral district which contains Graz.
http://lionelbaland.hautetfort.com/media/02/00/820594074.jpg
Outside of Graz the party is achieving very limited support, though it was able to win 3 / 460 seats in the Vienna municipal elections, all three in downtown districts.
I find this very interesting because the situation of the Kommunistische Partei Österreichs very much mirrors the experience of the communist party in my own country. During the 1940s we managed to achieve moderate electoral success - 2 seats in the national parliament, a couple municipal elections won and a few seats in the province of Manitoba's provincial government. Since then we've faded into obscurity.
While I'm definitely not one to advocate bourgeois elections as a priority for communists, the acceptance and recognition that comes with with electoral success does make organizing quite a bit easier.
I'm wondering if there are any Austrian comrades around with insight into why communism suddenly appealed to the people of Graz. I have a feeling it has something to do with the fact that Graz is a university town and that the voting age there was recently lowered to 16.
Apparently in 2003 they spontaneously won 20% of the popular vote, which dipped down to 11% in 2008 but rebounded to 20% in 2012, as you can see here. The party currently has 10 / 48 seats in the Grazer Gemeinderat and is second only to the conservative ÖVP. They also have 2 seats in the Landtag, the parliament of the state of Steiermark, both seats being won in the electoral district which contains Graz.
http://lionelbaland.hautetfort.com/media/02/00/820594074.jpg
Outside of Graz the party is achieving very limited support, though it was able to win 3 / 460 seats in the Vienna municipal elections, all three in downtown districts.
I find this very interesting because the situation of the Kommunistische Partei Österreichs very much mirrors the experience of the communist party in my own country. During the 1940s we managed to achieve moderate electoral success - 2 seats in the national parliament, a couple municipal elections won and a few seats in the province of Manitoba's provincial government. Since then we've faded into obscurity.
While I'm definitely not one to advocate bourgeois elections as a priority for communists, the acceptance and recognition that comes with with electoral success does make organizing quite a bit easier.
I'm wondering if there are any Austrian comrades around with insight into why communism suddenly appealed to the people of Graz. I have a feeling it has something to do with the fact that Graz is a university town and that the voting age there was recently lowered to 16.