ABSTRACT
Europeanization of the electoral campaign would not only have meant that elections in other European countries rather than in United States should have served as models but also that issues decided by the European Union should have been made central to the campaign. A Europeanization of the Austrian political system does take place, but it does not show on the outside, is rarely discussed publicly, and is not apparent during the electoral process. With the formation of a grand coalition government holding a 70 percent majority in the National Council, a certain Reaustrification of Austrian politics can be observed. While in public opinion the people’s party had lost the election, it most certainly had won the game of forming a government by occupying the most important seats in the cabinet and getting a government program mutually accepted that contained most of its own political priorities.
