Sharjah24 - AFP: Austrians began voting on Sunday in a general election that could see the far-right narrowly beat the conservatives for a historic win in the Alpine EU nation.
The Freedom Party (FPOe), which topped several pre-election opinion polls, has been in government several times but has never topped a national vote, though even if it wins, it is uncertain whether it would be able to form a government.
Since sharp-tongued Herbert Kickl took over the graft-tainted party in 2021, it has seen its popularity rebound on voter anger over migration, inflation and Covid restrictions, in line with far-right parties elsewhere in Europe.
"I want to vote for Kickl from the bottom of my heart. He needs to solve the problem of migration," Angela Erstic, 69, a doctor, told AFP at a final FPOe rally in central Vienna late Friday.
Cementing the FPOe's image as an anti-establishment party, Kickl, 55, has campaigned on slogans, such as "Courageously try something new". The party now stands at 27 percent of support in opinion polls.
The ruling conservative People's Party (OevP) has been lagging behind, but its leader, Chancellor Karl Nehammer, 51, has managed to narrow the gap in recent weeks.
Promising "stability instead of chaos", the OeVP is at 25 percent support in the latest polls.
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