Norbert Hofer

Early parliamentary elections are taking place in Austria. Will former Prime Minister Sebastian Kurtz return to power and what are the possible scenarios after that?

Just over 6 million Austrian citizens elect 183 MPs. Stability - this is what the first who stood in front of the urns wished.

The decision to cancel the change of time in the EU is unlikely to take place before 2021, Austrian Transport Minister Norbert Hofer said, quoted by DPA.

The start date, two years later than the one proposed by the European Commission in September, will give more time to member states to prepare, said Hofer, whose country currently holds the EU presidency.

Austrians are voting in a general election in which the frontrunner, conservative People's Party (ÖVP) leader Sebastian Kurz, is just 31.

The far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) and Social Democrats are competing for second place, opinion polls suggest.

The Social Democrats led the outgoing coalition with the ÖVP.

BELGRADE - In a long and hard-fought election battle which dragged on months longer than normal, and which drew significant international interest, the far-right candidate, Norbert Hofer, appears to have lost his bid to be president, according to exit polls.

Austrian voters roundly rejected on Dec. 4 a candidate vying to become the first freely elected far-right head of state in Europe since World War Two, halting at least temporarily the wave of populism sweeping Western democracies. 

Austria's far-right presidential candidate was soundly defeated on Dec. 4, confounding forecasts of a tight election in which he would ride a wave of populism sweeping the West.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has welcomed the results of the presidential election in Austria calling it "a breath of fresh air."

In Austria, left-leaning Alexander Van der Bellen defeated right-wing rival Norbert Hofer, a victory welcomed by moderate politicians across Europe seeking to halt the wave of right-wing populism sweeping Western democracies.

Austria’s far-right Freedom Party presidential candidate, Norbert Hofer, conceded defeat minutes after poll projections were released, dashing his hopes of becoming the European Union’s first democratically elected far-right president since WWII.

Norbert Hofer the candidate of Austria's Freedom Party, is set to lose the presidential election rerun that is being held on Sunday, exit polls show.

His opponent Alexander Van der Bellen, a former head of the Green party, is leading, according to estimates cited by daily newspaper Die Presse.

The outcome of Austria’s presidential elections today will serve as a new gauge of the populist wave sweeping Western democracies, as a divided country’s decision at the voting booths could deliver the first freely elected far-right head of state in Europe since World War II.