27/11/2025
Austria’s governing Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) is facing deepening internal tensions as Vice Chancellor and party leader Andreas Babler continues to slide in national polls. Despite the party’s participation in government, support has dropped well below 20 percent, triggering growing frustration within the ranks.
Max Lercher, head of the SPÖ in Styria, issued unusually blunt criticism in an interview, saying he regularly hears from citizens who feel “powerless” and no longer believe the government can improve their daily lives. “This frustration is increasingly directed at the SPÖ,” he warned.
Babler has been hit by a series of controversies highlighted by opposition parties, including the costs of a €14,000 trip to New York, rising consultancy expenses and staff increases in his ministry. The XXL coalition government, critics note, now costs €3.2 million per month.
Lercher repeated his long-held view that joining the coalition was a mistake and said the government has yet to deliver “real solutions.” He cited the so-called “cheap electricity law,” arguing that it risks misleading the public. “If you name a law like that, people expect electricity to become cheaper. Experts tell me it won’t. That only fuels more resentment,” he said.
On migration, Lercher maintained his hardline stance, calling zero immigration unrealistic but insisting that illegal migration must be “reduced to zero because it is a breach of the law.” He also supports a temporary cap on asylum applications until all pending cases are processed.
Turning back to the party leadership, Lercher sent a pointed message to Babler: “The person at the top must be able to pull the party forward.” He said he holds himself to the same standard — if he cannot lead the Styrian SPÖ successfully ahead of the next regional election, he would step aside. “This is about the movement and the country, not my ego,” he added.
