The Chancellor of Austria is the country's de facto chief executive and head of government. The chancellor is appointed by the president and chairs the cabinet, which includes the vice-chancellor and ministers. The chancellor is typically the leader of the largest party in the National Council or the senior partner in a coalition government. The chancellor's power varies depending on political circumstances and their own political gifts. They do not have the authority to direct other cabinet members and their decisions often require the president's consent. The current chancellor of Austria is Karl Nehammer, who was sworn in on 6 December 2021.
Characteristics | Values |
---|---|
Current Chancellor | Karl Nehammer |
Current Chancellor's Party | Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) |
Current Chancellor's Start Date | 6 December 2021 |
Current President | Alexander Van der Bellen |
Current President's Start Date | 26 January 2017 |
Chancellor's Role | Head of government |
Chancellor's Powers | Leads the cabinet, countersigns federal acts executed by the President, acts as interim President if the President is incapacitated for up to 20 days |
Chancellor's Appointment | Appointed by the President, who can also dismiss them |
Chancellor's Eligibility | Any Austrian national over the age of 18 |
Chancellor's Term Limit | None |
What You'll Learn
The chancellor is appointed by the president
The chancellor of Austria is appointed by the president and is viewed as the country's de facto chief executive. The chancellor is the head of government and chairs and leads the cabinet, which also includes the vice-chancellor and the ministers. The chancellor's power varies depending on political circumstances and their own political gifts.
The president can dismiss the chancellor, and neither the ministers nor the vice-chancellor report to the chancellor. The chancellor's power depends on the size of their affiliated parliamentary group. In a coalition government, the chancellor is usually the leader of the party most represented in the National Council, and the leader of the party able to grant a majority usually serves as the vice-chancellor.
The chancellor is typically appointed or dismissed together with all of the ministers, which means the whole government. The president can only appoint ministers on the advice of the chancellor, so the chancellor is appointed first. The chancellor presents the president with a list of ministers, who are usually installed just minutes later. The chancellor also serves as the head of the Federal Chancellery, which is staffed with civil servants.
The chancellor must be eligible to serve in the Nationalrat but need not be a member of it. In practice, a chancellor is unable to govern without the confidence of the National Council. For this reason, the chancellor is usually the leader of the largest party in the National Council or the senior partner in a coalition government.
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The chancellor is the head of government
The chancellor is usually the leader of the party that has won the most seats in the latest parliamentary election. At the very least, they are the choice of a majority of the new deputies. The chancellor must be eligible to serve in the Nationalrat but need not be a member of it. The chancellor also serves as head of the Federal Chancellery, which is staffed with civil servants.
In most respects, the chancellor functions as first among equals in the cabinet. They coordinate the work of the cabinet but are not entitled to give orders to individual ministers. The chancellor's role in a coalition government is different from their role when heading a one-party government. In a coalition government, the chancellor shares coordinating duties with the vice-chancellor, who is the leader of the junior party in the coalition. If the chancellor heads a one-party government, their leeway to make decisions is increased.
The chancellor does not have the authority to direct the other members of the Cabinet. The chancellor and the other members of the Austrian Cabinet are chosen upon their advice and are appointed or removed from office by the Federal President of Austria (the head of state). Neither the appointment of the chancellor nor the appointment of the members of the Austrian Cabinet needs to be confirmed by the Austrian Parliament. However, the Parliament can pass a vote of no confidence against individual members of the Cabinet or the entire administration, which would result in their resignation.
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The chancellor chairs and leads the cabinet
The chancellor is the de facto chief executive and head of the government of Austria. The chancellor is appointed by the president and can be dismissed by them. The chancellor is usually the leader of the party that has won the most seats in the latest parliamentary election. The chancellor must be eligible to serve in the Nationalrat but need not be a member of it.
The chancellor coordinates the work of the cabinet but is not entitled to give orders to individual ministers. The chancellor's power varies depending on political circumstances and their own political gifts. In a coalition government, the chancellor shares coordinating duties with the vice chancellor, who is the leader of the junior party in the coalition. If the chancellor heads a one-party government, they have more leeway to make decisions.
The chancellor also serves as the head of the Federal Chancellery, which is staffed with civil servants. The chancellor's residence and executive office are located at the Ballhausplatz in the centre of Vienna.
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The chancellor does not direct other cabinet members
The Austrian Federal Chancellor is the head of government. However, the chancellor does not have the authority to direct the other members of the Cabinet. The chancellor's role in the cabinet is that of a primus inter pares, or first among equals. The chancellor coordinates the work of the cabinet but is not entitled to give orders to individual ministers. Neither the ministers nor the vice-chancellor report to the chancellor.
The Austrian chancellor's power varies depending on political circumstances and their own political gifts. In a coalition government, the chancellor shares coordinating duties with the vice-chancellor, who is the leader of the junior party in the coalition. If the chancellor heads a one-party government, their leeway to make decisions is increased.
The Austrian chancellor is appointed by the president and viewed as the country's de facto chief executive. The chancellor chairs and leads the Cabinet, which is composed of the chancellor, the vice-chancellor, and the ministers. The chancellor also serves as the head of the Federal Chancellery, which is staffed with civil servants.
The chancellor is usually the leader of the party that has won the most seats in the latest parliamentary election. At the very least, they are the choice of a majority of the new deputies. The chancellor must be eligible to serve in the Nationalrat but need not be a member of it. Cabinet members do not have to be members of the Nationalrat either, but they must be eligible to be elected to it.
The Austrian cabinet is subject to dismissal by the president and the Nationalrat. The president can dismiss the entire cabinet without the concurrence of the chancellor, but the removal of individual members requires the recommendation of the chancellor. If the Nationalrat passes a vote of no confidence, concerning the entire cabinet or a minister, the cabinet or minister is removed from office.
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The chancellor is the country's chief executive
The chancellor of Austria is the country's chief executive and head of government. The chancellor is appointed by the president and chairs and leads the cabinet, which includes the vice-chancellor and the ministers. The chancellor is typically the leader of the largest party in the National Council or the senior partner in a coalition government. The chancellor's power depends on the size of their affiliated parliamentary group and their own political gifts. They do not have the authority to direct other members of the Cabinet, but they can request the president to dismiss ministers.
The chancellor's role is to coordinate the work of the cabinet and act as a primus inter pares. They also serve as the head of the Federal Chancellery, which is staffed with civil servants. The chancellor's power to set policy is derived partly from their inherent prestige, the fact that the president must dismiss ministers at their request, and their leadership position in the party or coalition controlling the National Council.
The chancellor's responsibilities include submitting bills passed by the National Council to the president for certification, announcing new laws, treaties, Constitutional Court decisions, election results, and changes to the Rules of Procedure. They also announce declarations of war and notify provincial governments of bills requiring their assent. Additionally, the chancellor convenes the Federal Assembly in certain situations and becomes the Acting President if the president is incapacitated for up to 20 days.
The current chancellor of Austria is Karl Nehammer of the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP), who was sworn in on 6 December 2021.
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Frequently asked questions
As of 6 December 2021, Karl Nehammer of the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) is the chancellor of Austria.
The chancellor is appointed by the president and can also be dismissed by them. The chancellor is usually the leader of the party that has won the most seats in the latest parliamentary election.
The chancellor is the head of the government and chairs and leads the cabinet. The chancellor also serves as the head of the Federal Chancellery and countersigns federal acts executed by the president.
There are no term limits for the chancellor.
Yes, the chancellor can be removed from office by the president or through a vote of no confidence by the National Council.