Leader Of Austrian Right-Wing Party FPO Hofer Steps Down

VIENNA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 01st June, 2021) The head of the right-wing Freedom Party of Austria (FPO), Norbert Hofer, announced on Tuesday that he was stepping down from his position.

Hofer shared the news on Twitter before deleting the tweet moments later. He later confirmed his decision to the local media.

"Yes, I am stepping down. I do not want it any more," he told reporters.

So far, it is unclear who will be Hofer's successor at the helm of the FPO. Experts speculate it might be Herbert Kickl, who served as Austria's interior minister from 2017 to 2019 and is currently the party's executive chairman.

The FPO is an opposition party with 31 parliamentary seats out of 183. In the 2019 snap elections, the party lost much of its voter support following a large-scale corruption scandal involving the previous party leader and Austrian Vice Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache. The scandal, known as the Ibiza affair, caused the collapse of the entire Austrian governing coalition, which led to the snap elections.