General Information
At stake in this election:
- 183 seats in the National Council (Nationalrat)
Description of government structure:
- Chief of State: President Heinz FISCHER *
- Head of Government: Chancellor Wolfgang SCHUESSEL
- Assembly: Austria has a bicameral Federal Assembly (Bundesversammlung) consisting of the Federal Council (Bundesrat) with 62 seats and the National Council (Nationalrat) with 183 seats.
* The President is eligible for a second term.
Description of electoral system:
- The President is elected by majority vote to serve a 6-year term.
- In the Federal Council (Bundesrat) 62 members are elected by indirect vote*. In the National Council (Nationalrat) 183 members are elected through a party-list proportional representation system to serve 4-year terms.**
* Members represent each of the 9 states on the basis of population, but with each state having at least 3 representatives; members serve a 5- or 6-year terms.
** A 4% threshold is required for a party to enter the National Council.
Main parties in the electoral race:
- Austrian Social Democratic Party / Sozialdemokratische Partei
- Alliance for the Future of Austria/Bündnis Zukunft Österreich
- Freedom Party of Austria/Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs
- Austrian People's Party/Österreichische Völkspartei
- The Greens/Grunen - Die Grünen
Population and number of registered voters
- Population: 8,268,641 (2006)
- Registered voters: 6,107,892 (2006)
Gender Data:
· Female Population: 4,248,925 (2006)
· 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: Yes
· Number of Female Parliamentarians: 59 (National Council) (as of 2006 elections)
· Human Development Index Position: 23 (2014)
· Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A
Disability Data:
· Is Australia a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)
· Has Australia ratified CRPD: Yes (26 Septmember 2008)
· Population with a disability: 1,240,296 (est.)