In fact, the Austrian vote no more represents an endorsement of traditional establishment ideals than the Italian referendum signals their rejection.
If anything, the two votes illustrate how the increasingly blurred lines between populism and mainstream across much of Europe are shaking the political landscape.
The Italian decision, for example, has been seen as the mirror image of the Austrian result: the rejection of an establishment prime minister in favor of populists. [...]
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi’s proposed constitutional reform would have meant a radical departure from Italy’s post-war democratic norms. Seen in that light, the No vote suggests above all that Italians are resistant to radical change, even at the cost of political instability. [...]
Consider Alexander Van der Bellen, Austria’s president-elect. A former Green leader whose party never garnered more than 11 percent of the vote under his stewardship, Van der Bellen tried to soften his image during the campaign to attract more mainstream voters. He declared himself an independent and even donned Tracht, or traditional Alpine garb, a favorite tactic of establishment conservatives, but anathema to those on the Left. [...]
The FPÖ has governed at the national level as the junior coalition party twice over the past 30 years and has led regional and municipal governments. It currently has representatives in all nine of Austria’s provincial assemblies as well as in the European Parliament.
In contrast, Austria’s Greens have never been part of a federal government. The party rarely polls at over 12 percent, about one-third of the FPÖ’s support.
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