Austria's Prime Minister: Age And Leadership

Austria's head of government is called the Federal Chancellor, who chairs and leads the cabinet. The Chancellor's role is comparable to that of a prime minister in other countries. Sebastian Kurz, who was born in 1986, was elected Chancellor of Austria in 2017 at the age of 31, making him the country's youngest chancellor and the world's youngest head of government at the time. Kurz served as the leader of the conservative Austrian People's Party and previously held the position of Foreign Minister.

Sebastian Kurz was 31 when he became foreign minister

Austria's head of government is called the Federal Chancellor, and the current chancellor is Karl Nehammer. However, the title "prime minister" is sometimes used as the English translation of the German word "Bundeskanzler", which means "federal chancellor".

Sebastian Kurz is the foreign minister and leader of the conservative Austrian People's Party (OeVP). In 2017, at the age of 31, Kurz was poised to head the Austrian government following coalition government negotiations. He had previously served as the country's youngest foreign minister at the age of 27.

Sebastian Kurz has been described as a "whizz kid" or a "boy wonder" in Austrian politics, with the nickname "Wunderwuzzi". Kurz's rise to prominence began in 2009 when he was elected chairman of the Austrian JVP with 99% of the vote. He served as a deputy co-chair of the Viennese People's Party from 2009 to 2016 and was a member of the Viennese State and Municipality Diet from 2010 to 2011. In 2013, he briefly served as a member of Parliament before resigning his seat to become the country's foreign minister.

As foreign minister, Kurz worked to rebrand his political party as an agent for change, adopting the name "New People's Party" and changing the faction's traditional black colour to turquoise. He has also maintained a hard stance on refugees and immigration, opposing the opening of European Union borders to asylum seekers and migrants in 2015. Kurz's popularity among Austrian voters, especially young people, has been attributed to his symbolism of a desire for change in the country.

Kurz is the leader of the conservative Austrian People's Party

Austria's head of government is the Federal Chancellor, who is currently Alexander Van der Bellen, and not a Prime Minister. Sebastian Kurz is the leader of the conservative Austrian People's Party (OeVP) and served as the Federal Chancellor of Austria from 2017 to 2019.

Kurz was born in 1986 and was 31 years old when he was elected as the Chancellor of Austria in 2017. He is considered to be a part of a new wave of youthful leaders, along with Emmanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau. Kurz was the country's youngest foreign minister at the age of 27 in 2013. He served as the chairman of the youth arm of the Austrian People's Party (OVP) and led its electoral campaign in the 2010 Viennese state election. In 2017, Kurz rebranded the party as the "New People's Party", changing its traditional black colour to turquoise.

Kurz has been compared to U.S. President Donald Trump and Italian Minister Matteo Salvini due to his right-wing policies. He has also been criticised for his stance on refugees and immigration. In 2015, he opposed opening European Union borders to Muslim asylum seekers and migrants. Kurz has also suggested that refugees rescued in the Mediterranean Sea should be transferred to refugee camps outside of Europe.

As the leader of the Austrian People's Party, Kurz has worked to present himself and his party as agents of change. He has focused on issues such as generational equality and fair pensions, and his party has been the most represented in the National Council. Despite this, Kurz and his party have had to form coalition governments with other parties to gain a majority.

Austria's chancellor chairs and leads the cabinet

The chancellor does not have the authority to issue directions to ministers, and neither the ministers nor the vice chancellor report to the chancellor. The chancellor's role in the cabinet is that of a primus inter pares. The chancellor's power to set policy comes partly from the inherent prestige of the office, and partly from the fact that the president is required to dismiss ministers that the chancellor requests to be removed. The chancellor also derives power from their position of leadership in the party or coalition controlling the National Council.

The chancellor and the cabinet are appointed by the president and can be dismissed by the president. The president can only appoint ministers on the advice of the chancellor. The president is constitutionally required to sack any minister whom the National Council wants removed. The National Council can force the president to dismiss a chancellor or a minister through a vote of no confidence.

The first Austrian sovereign head of government was the State Chancellor of the Austrian Empire, held by Klemens von Metternich. The office was later renamed Minister-President of the Austrian Empire and remained until the dissolution of Austria-Hungary. The first head of government after the monarchy was the State Chancellor of German-Austria, held by Karl Renner. The office was renamed to State Chancellor of Austria and later changed to Federal Chancellor, which is the position's current form.

The chancellor is appointed by the president of Austria

The chancellor of Austria, officially the federal chancellor of the Republic of Austria, is the head of government of the Republic of Austria. Twenty-nine people (twenty-eight men and one woman) have served as chancellor. The chancellor's power depends on the size of their affiliated parliamentary group. In the case of a coalition cabinet, the chancellor is commonly the leader of the party most represented in the National Council. The chancellor is appointed and sworn in by the president.

The current chancellor of Austria is Christian Stocker, who was sworn in on 3 March 2025. Stocker, 64, did not run for the position when Austrians voted in September and has not previously served in a national government. He leads a coalition government, bringing together his conservative Austrian People's Party, the center-left Social Democrats, and the liberal Neos.

The position of chancellor in Austria has a long history. In 1498, the Habsburg Emperor Maximilian I attempted to counter the spiritual power of the Reichserzkanzler with a more secular position of an Imperial Court Chancellor (Hofkanzler). However, the two positions were later merged. In 1526, a separate position of Austrian Court Chancellor was established under Emperor Leopold I, who appointed Johann Paul Freiherr von Hocher and Theodor von Strattman to the role. The eighteenth century was dominated by Prince Wenzel Anton of Kaunitz-Rietberg, who served as Chancellor to four Habsburg emperors and held the titles of both Hofkanzler and Staatskanzler.

In 1821, Prince Klemens von Metternich was appointed by Francis I to the positions of Hofkanzler and Staatskanzler. However, the title of State Chancellor was abolished in 1848 following the revolutions, and the position became that of a Minister-President of Austria, equivalent to Prime Minister. The term Bundeskanzler was later implemented with the enactment of the Constitution of Austria in 1920, and the position of Chancellor has remained the same until the present day.

Kurz was Austria's youngest foreign minister at 27

Austria's chancellor is Sebastian Kurz, who is 31 years old as of 2017. Kurz is the leader of the conservative Austrian People's Party (OeVP). He is also the country's foreign minister and was Austria's youngest minister when he took office at 27.

Kurz's career began in 2009 when he was elected chairman of the Austrian JVP at a federal party convention, receiving 99% of the vote. He was re-elected in 2014 with 100% of the vote. From 2009 to 2016, Kurz served as a deputy co-chair of the Viennese People's Party. He also served as a member of the Viennese State and Municipality Diet from 2010 to 2011, where he focused on "generational equality and fair pensions." In 2013, Kurz was elected to the Austrian Parliament, winning the most direct votes of any candidate. However, he resigned his parliamentary seat in December 2013 to become the country's foreign minister.

Kurz has been characterised as a "whizz kid" or "boy wonder" by the Austrian media, who call him “Wunderwuzzi”. He has worked to rebrand his political party as an agent for change, adopting the name "New People's Party" and changing the faction's colour from black to turquoise. Kurz has also been compared to other young world leaders, such as Emmanuel Macron of France and Justin Trudeau of Canada.

Despite his youth, Kurz is not a new figure in Austrian politics. He has been described as the "longest-serving minister in the actual government" by some commentators. Kurz has also been praised for his determination to "make dreams possible" for Austrians, particularly in the context of high taxes. However, Kurz's stance on refugees and immigration has been criticised. In 2015, he opposed opening European Union borders to Muslim asylum seekers and migrants. He has also advocated for the Australian refugee model, suggesting that refugees rescued in the Mediterranean Sea should be transferred to refugee camps outside of Europe.

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