introduction

The subject of this essay is the Freiheitliche Partei Österreichs (FPÖ), traditionally translated into English as the Freedom Party of Austria. It is a party with numerous internal contradictions, especially of an ideological nature. For years after its launch in 1956, it was almost universally reviled in Austria as a party of old Nazis. In 1979 it joined the Liberal International and now wishes to be known in English as the Liberal party of Austria. In 1983, the FPÖ commenced its first ever period of federal governmental office, and in a coalition with the Socialists at that.

This essay seeks to explain the FPÖ's transition from a party of protest to a party of government. First, it will show that the FPÖ's contradictions are a hallmark of the political tradition from which it derives. Secondly, it will examine the current tensions and conflicts in the FPÖ's organisation. Thirdly, I shall look at the party's often precarious electoral situation, concentrating in particular upon the profile of its protest voters, who have traditionally constituted a substantial proportion of the FPÖ's electoral support. Then, I shall outline the programmatic development of the party, with special reference to the most recent developments in the relationship between the FPÖ's national and liberal traditions. The penultimate section of this paper will concentrate upon the party's experience in government. Here the party appears to have had some success in one of its major objectives, namely to start reducing the influence of Austria's very powerful and ubiquitous system of Proporz (the party-political allocation of public offices).