Far-right wins close Austria election, a boost for Putin

A far-right party founded by former Nazis appeared to have won Austria's election Sunday, in a result that could reshape Europe's political landscape and help tilt the balance of power between Russia and the West.

Projections from ORF public televisionbased on exit polls suggest that the pro-Russia, anti-immigration Freedom Party, or FPÖ, has finished first with 29.1% % of the vote.

They appear to have edged out the ruling conservative Österreichische Volkspartei (ÖVP) or Austrian People's Party, into second place with26.2% of the vote. The Social Democratic Party of Austria finished third with 20.4%.

The FPÖ's victory is the latest sign that a movement characterized by anti-immigrant and anti-Islam sentiment has made a breakthrough in the continent.

It represents a stunning reversal of fortunes for the party, which crashed out of government in 2019 after a corruption scandal. But it has fallen far short of an absolute majority in the tight election and will need help to form a stable government.

Building a coalition is likely to be difficult, however, since all other major groups have ruled out working with the FPÖ.

As in other elections across Europe this summer that have seen the political extremes outperform their moderate counterparts, Austria may therefore face a period of political uncertainty as parties wrangle to take charge.

But even if the party fails to form a coalition government, the result will serve as a symbolic victory for the far-right.

The FPÖ is led by 55-year-old Herbert Kickl, who has been branded as "Volkskanzler" or "People's Chancellor," by his party, a term most associated with the Nazis who used it to describe Adolf Hitler. Indeed, the FPÖ was founded in the 1950s by former members of Hitler's