Republic of Austria: President, 22 May 2016

At stake in this election:

• The office of the President of the Republic of Austria

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Heinz FISCHER (since 8 July 2004)
• Head of Government: Chancellor Werner FAYMANN (since 2 December 2008)
• Assembly: Austria has a bicameral Bundesversammlung (Federal Assembly) composed of the Bundesrat (Federal Council) and the Nationalrat (National Council). The Federal Council consists of 62 seats and the National Council consists of 183.

Description of electoral system:

• The President is directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed, for a 6-year term, with eligibility for a second term.

Last Election:

• The first round of the presidential election was held on 24 April 2016. Norbert HOFER won the most votes with 36.40%, followed by Alexander VAN DER BELLEN, who finished with 20.38%. The second round will be contested by these two candidates. 

Main candidates in the election:

• Alexander VAN DER BELLEN
  • Party: The Greens – The Green Alternative/Die Grünen – Die Grüne Alternative
• Norbert HOFER
  • Party: Freedom Party of Austria/Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs

Population and number of registered voters:

·         Population: 8,665,550 (July 2015 est.)

·         Registered Voters: 6,384,331 (2013)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 4,428,324 (July 2015 est.)

·         Is Austria a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (17 July 1980)

·         Has Austria ratified CEDAW: Yes (31 March 1982)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: No

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 74 (30.20%)[1]

·         Human Development Index Position: 23 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A

Disability Data:

·         Is Austria a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Austria ratified CRPD: Yes (26 September 2008)

·         Population with a disability: 1,299,833