Población y sus características

(Sozialdemokratische Partei Österreichs;

SPÖ)

HISTORY

The Social Democratic Party was originally formed in 1889 and was subsequently redesignated the Austrian Socialist Party (Sozialistische Partei Österreichs) before it returned to its original name in 1991. The party suc-

cessfully united the previously separate factions of the Social Democrats and the radical Socialists without adopting extreme Socialist radicalism. The SPÖ of the First Republic identified with orthodox Marxism; in the Second Republic the party took a less ideological stand. From 1947 to 1966 the SPÖ served as the junior coalition partner with the ÖVP. In 1970 the party returned to office as a minority party under the chan- cellorship of Bruno Kreisky before winning a majority in 1971; the majority was maintained in the 1975 and 1979 elections. Due to increasing domestic problems, in 1983 the SPÖ lost its majority in parliament. Rather than form a minority government as it did in 1970, the SPÖ formed a coalition with the FPÖ that lasted until 1986, as a result of the FPÖ’s swing to the right. Realiz- ing the need for support to rule the nation, the SPÖ as the senior member and the ÖVP re-formed a coalition, which lasted into the mid-1990s. Since 1999 the SPÖ has been in opposition, a difficult predicament for a party that held government power for a 30-year period between 1970 and 2000.

ORGANIZATION

Organizationally the SPÖ is more centralized than either the FPÖ or the ÖVP. Party leadership decisions are almost always accepted by the party congress. Although the same can be said about the other par- ties given the high level of party discipline in Austria, the need for compromise is less necessary in the SPÖ because of the party’s ideological, policy interest and regional uniformity.

The party is supported by local, district, and pro- vincial party organizations. The SPÖ also has strong ties with corporate organizations such as the Austrian Trade Union, the Federal Chamber of Workers and Employees, and the Austrian Labor Farmers’ Associa- tion; however, these organizations are not components of the SPÖ like the ÖVP suborganizations. Membership in the SPÖ is done on a personal level. Rather than establishing party affiliation through membership in associations as is the case in the ÖVP, citizens who subscribe to the ideals of the party personally choose to join the SPÖ.

In the local groups, a special party official known as the confidant provides the connection between the party members and the party leaders. There are approximately 70,000 confidants making up about 10 percent of the total SPÖ membership. Confidants are trained at the party headquarters. Most of the top officials of the SPÖ are chosen on the basis of seniority, achievement, and adaptability from this group of confidants; other top offi- cials have been recruited from qualified technocrats.

Delegates to the party conferences are chosen by provincial and local party organizations, the Austrian Trade Union, the youth organization, and other aux- iliary organizations. Additional delegates include the party members of the Nationalrat. A special party council assembled by the party leader is responsible for candidate ranking and selection, although the council does consult with other party organizations.

Up to 1991 the party published a daily newspaper,

AZ; financial problems then forced the newspaper to

stop publication. The SPÖ continues to print a monthly theoretical journal, Die Zukunft (The Future).

POLICY

Up to the 1950s the party’s platform was aligned with orthodox Marxism. In 1958 the party’s orientation changed to a more humanistic Socialism. The new approach concentrated on the economic, political, and social development of each citizen through reform. In addition, the new SPÖ program declared that Socialism and Christianity were compatible. By 1966 the party had become less of an ideological party and more of a pragmatic, left-wing liberal party. In 1991 its name was changed from the Socialist Party to the Social Demo- cratic Party, reflecting its shift toward the political cen- ter in the late 1980s. The party abandoned its doctrine on nationalization, thus allowing limited privatization of state assets to take place; it started to reduce the size of the welfare state it had built up in the 1970s; and it gradually shifted in favor of EU membership.

The SPÖ advocates a progressive taxation approach with high social expenditures and economic planning. Along with this approach the party has worked to maintain a low level of unemployment while keeping inflation under control. The electorate regards the SPÖ as providing political stability; in 1995 the SPÖ was elected on the basis of its apparent commitment to securing jobs and pensions and because of its opposi- tion to an ÖVP–FPÖ coalition. In addition, the SPÖ supported Austria’s permanent neutrality.

More recently the SPÖ has shifted back toward defending traditional Socialist values and is perceived by voters as the party that wants to preserve traditional Austrian institutions such as corporatism. The SPÖ fought against cuts to the welfare state and has opposed the full retreat of the state from industry. Should it enter office after the next general election, the SPÖ has vowed to reverse elements of the present government’s reform agenda such as tax cuts and the privatization of state enterprises. During the 2002 general election the SPÖ promised to cancel the purchase of the Eurofighter military plane and to adopt policies designed to reduce

the number of people unemployed and kick-start the national economy through an increase in public spend- ing. Since 2000 the SPÖ has also resorted to more decisive measures to counter the ÖVP–FPÖ coalition government. In response to the government’s proposed purchase of the Eurofighter, for instance, the SPÖ sug- gested that it was willing to resort to popular petitions as a means to force the government to back down.

MEMBERSHIP AND CONSTITUENCY

In comparison with the ÖVP, the SPÖ is a mass- membership party; SPÖ membership is direct and individual rather than based on indirect membership through organizations that are associated with the party. The party represents a majority of the workers and a substantial portion of the lower middle class. SPÖ supporters mainly come from in and around the larger cities; members also tend to oppose or be indifferent to the Catholic Church. Most of the electorate who vote for the SPÖ are members of the party. As of 2002 the membership of the SPÖ was approximately 600,000.

Because the party’s platform is popular with female voters, women constitute over one-third of the party membership. This can be viewed as significant since women make up over 54 percent of the elector- ate. The party also relies on young voters who support the party’s liberal policies. Besides maintaining its sup- port in the urban communities, the SPÖ has increased its support in rural and Catholic areas.

Reflecting some of the antinuclear and ecological concerns of portions of the urban electorate, some prominent members of the SPÖ have transferred their support to the Green parties. Beginning in 1983 and up to the early 2000s, the effects of the shift in party support of the Greens can be seen in the National- rat. In 1983 the Green parties (ALO and VGÖ) won 3.3 percent of the vote; during the 2002 election the Greens won 9.5 percent of the vote. Support for the SPÖ decreased through the 1980s and early 1990s but increased in the early 2000s. The SPÖ won 33 percent of the vote in the 1999 general election and 36.5 per- cent of the vote in 2002.

FINANCING

Financial support for the SPÖ comes from member- ship dues, the party tax on functionaries, and federal subsidies.

LEADERSHIP

From 1967 to 1983 Bruno Kreisky led the SPÖ. Kreisky was viewed as a father figure to many Austrians during a time of international insecurity. When the SPÖ lost Austria 77

its parliamentary majority in 1983, Kreisky resigned as party leader and Fred Sinowatz, the former vice chan- cellor, became party leader. In protest over the Kurt Waldheim presidency, Sinowatz resigned as chancel- lor and party leader. In June 1986 a former finance minister, Dr. Franz Vranitsky, became the new federal chancellor and party leader.

The party leader as of 2005 was Alfred Gusenbauer, who succeeded Viktor Klima, who in 1999 led the SPÖ to its worst-ever electoral defeat. Gusenbauer is not a great debater and performed poorly against the more charismatic ÖVP leader in the major 2002 electoral debates. He has also been the target of considerable intra-party criticism from radical SPÖ factions that want to push the party further to the left. In November 2004 Gusenbauer was re-elected leader of the main opposition SPÖ. He received 89 percent of the vote (down from 99.6 percent two years before), which was interpreted as a small (but still significant) vote of no confidence among party members in his leadership.