Europe heaves a sigh of relief after far-right’s loss in Austria

VIENNA — Austria’s voters have resoundingly rejected anti-immigration and euroskeptic Norbert Hofer’s bid to become the European Union’s first far-right president, a result greeted with relief from centrist politicians across the continent. Instead, Greens-backed independent candidate Alexander Van der Bellen swept 53.3 percent of Sunday’s vote against 46.7 percent for his rival from the anti-immigration Freedom Party (FPOe), according to public television projections. “Today it is not an exaggeration if I say that today we see a red-white-red — the flag of Austria — as a signal of hope and change. A red-white-red signal from Austria to all the capitals of the European Union,” Van der Bellen, 72, said in Vienna. The official result of what has been an ugly and polarizing election in normally peaceable Austria, lasting 11 months, was not expected until Monday. But on Sunday an “incredibly sad” Hofer conceded defeat. “I congratulate Alexander Van der Bellen on his success and call on all Austrians to stick together and work together,” Hofer said on Facebook. Establishment politicians in Austria and Europe had been nervous about a possible Hofer victory in a year that has seen two monumental political upsets already: Donald Trump winning the US presidential election and Britain deciding to leave the EU. It came shortly before exit polls suggested Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi had lost a high-stakes constitutional referendum also held Sunday — following a “No” campaign spearheaded by the populist Five Star Movement — on which he has staked his job. Hofer, like Trump and “Brexit” proponents, had stoked concerns about immigration and globalization, vowing to “get rid of the dusty establishment,” seek closer ties with Russia and fight against “Brussels centralizing power.” Following the arrival of a record number of migrants last year including many fleeing war in Syria, Hofer had also declared that Islam has “no place in Austria,” seeing Muslims as a danger to the country’s values, traditions and security. The role of the Austrian president is largely ceremonial, but there had been fears that a Hofer victory would embolden other anti-establishment forces ahead of elections next year in France, Germany and the Netherlands. — AFP