Mass mobilisations needed to fight cuts by federal and state government!
“The year is 2026. All over the world, right-wing and far-right parties are winning elections… all over the world? No! In Graz, a small town in the south of equally small Austria, the Communist Party has won the local council elections for the second time and is providing the mayor…”
This is how a report on the elections of 28 June 2026 might begin. The KPÖ (Communist Party of Austria) has increased its vote in Graz, Austria’s second largest city, by 6.9% to 35.7% and now holds 18 out of the 48 local councillors. The conservative ÖVP (Austrian People’s Party), the Greens, the SPÖ (Social Democratic Party of Austria) and NEOS (Liberals) all lost ground. The FPÖ (the right wing populist Freedom Party) managed to increase its share by 1.4% to a total of 12%, placing it in fourth position behind the Greens. The SPÖ lost almost half of its 2021 vote and now stands at just 5,6%.
There is an alternative to the FPÖ
In light of the policies pursued by Trump and his allies, and the high poll ratings enjoyed by the FPÖ, AfD (German right wing populist party) and other right wing populist parties, some people are worried about those parties’ votes. Nationally, the FPÖ is polling at 37%. Yet the result in Graz shows that it is possible for the left to counter the right wing populists.
In the 2024 Styrian state election, the FPÖ secured 21.07% of the vote in Graz, and 19.6% in the city in the national election held in the same year. In these local council elections, however, it managed only 12% in Graz because there was a genuine alternative. A not inconsiderable proportion of KPÖ voters came from the ranks of non-voters, but, indirectly via non-voters, also from FPÖ voters. Many of these are people who – quite rightly – are dissatisfied with the political establishment. The longing for a party that is truly different from the corrupt politicians who pocket money whilst at the same time constantly ‘having to’ make cuts affecting working people – this longing is strong, and the KPÖ is partly filling the vacuum. Nationally though, they have not yet managed to reach the 5% barrier needed to enter the national parliament. Two possible reasons for the difference in the KPÖ’s election results at city and national level could be:
1) Many voters fear that their vote will be “wasted” because the KPÖ might not manage to win a seat after all;
2) More importantly, the KPÖ’s own political approach of focusing on local issues. At city level, the KPÖ’s essentially social-work-oriented approach to politics (‘helping rather than talking’ instead of ‘fighting rather than talking’) works. But at national level, however, this is more difficult. The fact that the KPÖ comments less on federal or international issues – and, above all, in a much more vague manner – is backfiring.
Nevertheless, the result in Graz shows that if there is a genuine alternative, people will embrace it. The ‘C’ for ‘Communist’ is no obstacle – but the SPÖ’s clumsy anti-KPÖ bashing certainly was an obstacle for the SPÖ. Within new left-wing formations, one often hears that one mustn’t be ‘too left-wing’ so as not to scare voters away. The truth is: there are already enough conformist, watered-down parties but an outspoken, honest, socialist-communist party is a rarity.
What the Left can learn from the KPÖ
In recent years, KPÖ elected representatives have donated several million euros from their salaries to support the people of Graz. These representatives retain a maximum of 2,500 euros net a month as their salary, keeping them very close to the reality of life of ordinary working class people. This is important for understanding and experiencing first-hand how political decisions – such as increases in fees – have a concrete impact on the working class.
The concept is sound and, incidentally, not an invention of the KPÖ. It is rooted in the history of the workers’ movement. In April 1871 the Paris Commune decided that the maximum wage of any official would be equal to that of a skilled worker. The Bolsheviks, following the Russian Revolution, attached great importance to ensuring that the wages of ‘politicians’ did not differ greatly from those of the working class (a situation that was very different later under Stalinism). The CWI’s elected representatives in Britain, Ireland, Sweden and many other countries, have also adhered to this principle for decades, which the KPÖ Styria observed closely long before it held any seats itself.
Transparency and openness also set the KPÖ apart from all other parties. It is not an aloof party, but consists of “people like you and me”. Unlike all other parties, the KPÖ is not guided by the interests of the major media or corporations. It is not a capitalist party. In its policies, it genuinely endeavours to be guided by the interests of workers, the unemployed, young people and pensioners.
The limits of the KPÖ model
However, the model adopted by the KPÖ in Styria is constrained by the limits of capitalism. The Graz budget is not drawn up based on what is necessary for the people of Graz, the environment, culture, etc. On the contrary, decisions made at federal level, the financial equalisation scheme between the federal government, the provinces and the local authorities,and the policies of the (FPÖ) provincial government have a massive impact on the Graz city government. The state of the global economy, lurching from one crisis to the next, is also keenly felt. All this restricts the scope of the Graz model far more than the fact that coalition partners are needed to govern.
The Graz city council has also implemented pay cuts for public sector workers mandated by the federal government. As a result, thousands of local authority staff working in public transport, health and social care, and other sectors will face a decline in their real wages for years to come.
A city council can make political decisions on how to allocate the available budget. The KPÖ ensures that funds are spent not on prestige projects, but on housing, social services and healthcare. However, it adheres to the allocated budget limits. It is therefore operating on a tight budget. The situation will continue to worsen because the crises mean that more people need help, whilst at the same time the federal and provincial governments are making cuts in precisely these areas. The city’s meagre budget is increasingly unable to plug these gaps, and the social welfare fund available to KPÖ councillors is equally limited.
The dilemma facing Elke Kahr and her KPÖ comrades is therefore twofold: the necessity of bourgeois coalition partners and a limited budget. Just like Luke, Leia, Han and Chewbacca in the Death Star’s garbage compactor in the Star Wars films, the walls of practical constraints are closing in ever more on the KPÖ politicians. To avoid being crushed here, it will take more than honesty and transparency.
On the evening of her first election victory in 2021, Elke Kahr quite rightly said that her coalition partner was the people of Graz. Unfortunately, little has been done to turn voters into activists and party members. In a city with around 300,000 residents and 43,000 votes cast now, the KPÖ has fewer than 400 members in Graz. This is despite its vote increasing from the 34,000 in 2021. It is good to be selective and only accept members who are not motivated by the careerist prospect of a position, but who are genuinely committed to the cause. Yet there are certainly far more than 400 such people in this city. And it is possible, through various forms of grassroots and civic organisation, to invite and engage voters to work together to achieve what is necessary.
Militant policies
With a militant and active mass base, neither coalition partners nor a tight budget are decisive. Rather, it is the balance of power that can be demonstrated through militant mobilisation. The KPÖ is quite rightly seeking to prevent the planned centralisation – and consequent relocation – of the ÖBB (the Austrian state-run railroad company) operations control centre from Graz to Villach, which is intended as a cost-cutting measure; yet it is attempting to do so solely through talks with the ÖBB officials and without mobilising the ÖBB workers, who want exactly the same thing. Why?
The socialist led Liverpool City Council in Britain did just that against Thatcher during the neoliberal 1980s and won concessions. However, if such a grassroots base is lacking, there is a risk that KPÖ councillors will be forced to implement measures that are at the expense of the population and, in particular, the working class. Whether KPÖ members feel uncomfortable about this and continue to donate their salaries then quickly becomes irrelevant. Socialist and communist politics can never be guided by what is ‘feasible’ or by ‘tactics’, but must always focus on what is necessary for the working class. This applies to the entire working class, whether they are eligible to vote or not! The fact that the KPÖ tends to address migration and racism only marginally, ultimately leads to a weakening not only of its own grassroots but also of the working class as a whole.
The KPÖ’s latest election victory in Graz is an important and positive step. The task now is to capitalise on the opportunities this presents. This means fighting, together with the people of Graz and the working class, to achieve genuine qualitative improvements, even in the face of practical constraints. It also means laying the organisational foundations for the genuine representation and organisation of the working class. The KPÖ has an important role to play in both of these areas! Let’s not let this opportunity slip by, it is the best foundation for pushing back the far right as well!