Platter wants to support Van der Bellen if he returns

The Tyrolean governor also wants to "recommend" support for the incumbent Federal President in the spring elections to the ÖVP. At the federal level, no new elections are in sight.

Tyrol's governor Günther Platter (ÖVP) would like Alexander Van der Bellen - if he decides to stand - to remain federal president even after the elections in April 2022. "I will support Van der Bellen. I think you can feel the Tyrolean mentality with him," he told the "Tiroler Tageszeitung" (Saturday edition). He would also "recommend" this to his party. In addition, after the turbulence at the federal level, he saw no new elections in the offing.

Especially in times of crisis, Van der Bellen is "the calm one and the right one", argued Platter in the "TT". ÖVP National Council President Wolfgang Sobotka had already spoken out in the summer in favor of supporting the incumbent Federal President and had rejected his own candidacy.

Platter wants to support Van der Bellen when he returns

Performance of the ÖVP "manageable"

The performance of the ÖVP has been manageable in the past, which has led to "uncertainty among the population", admitted the Tyrolean head of state. "You understand that nobody that in a time of crisis we might have party-political and personal discussions for a long time".

The Greens and the ÖVP should now continue to work. "Now the debates are over. Now we have to work, I can only advise the federal government," he told his colleagues in Vienna. "We never had to master such a difficult situation after the Second World War," he explained.

In terms of the state elections in 2023, Platter stated that he did not want any early elections. He announced "signs of the future" to his team: "It needs a certain renewal announcement, also in terms of personnel". There are enough young people who want to take responsibility. Platter had already said that he wanted to run again as a lead candidate. In the election that follows, in 2028, he will no longer be available, after all he does not want to remain governor until he is 80.

(APA)