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President of the National Council
Präsident des Österreischischen Nationalrates
Incumbent
Wolfgang Sobotka
since 20 December 2017
National Council of Austria
StyleMr. President
(when addressed in parliament)
StatusPrimary presiding officer
Member ofNational Council
SeatRedoute Wing, Hofburg Imperial Palace (provisionally)
Austrian Parliament Building (standard), Innere Stadt, Vienna
NominatorPolitical parties
AppointerNational Council
Constituting instrumentConstitution of Austria
First holderKarl Seitz
DeputyDoris Bures
Second President
Norbert Hofer
Third President
Websiteparlament.gv.at

The President of the National Council is the presiding officer of the National Council, the lower house of the Austrian Parliament.

Since December 2017 Wolfgang Sobotka (ÖVP) has served as the current President of the National Council, Doris Bures (SPÖ) as the Second President and Norbert Hofer (FPÖ) as the Third. All three Presidents together form the Presidium of the National Council.

In the Austrian order of precedence the President of the National Council places after the President and before the Chancellor.

Election[edit]

The President, the second and the third President are elected by the majority of the National Council at the beginning of each legislative session.

The Presidium even remains active after the dissolution of the National Council, until the Council obtains its new elected leadership. This also applies if the President of the former legislative session has no mandate in the new session.

In the second republic it became a political practice, that the most powerful party receives the President and the second and third most powerful party the second and third president.

Tasks and duties[edit]

The exact tasks of the President and his deputies are determined in the Nationalratsgeschäftsordnung. He is in charge of the administrative affairs of the National Council and creates a budget concept for the Council with the second and third President. The President is the representative of national council for the public and has to ensure moderation and balanced rights. He handles the Geschäftsordnung and has to guarantee for its observance (especially for the maintenance silence and order and the meeting hall), he exercises the Hausrecht in the Austrian Parliament Building and heads the parliamentary directorate.

The three Presidents and the parliamentary leaders together form the Präsidialkonferenz, a communicative organisation responsible for amiable cooperation under the parties within the Council.

The Presidium assumes the tasks of the Federal President in case of a longer during prevention or permanent suspension, for example because of death, a resignation or a deposition. This should ensure that overseeing tasks towards the Government and other duties are not lost.

Termination[edit]

List of officeholders[edit]

List of presidents[edit]

National Assembly

Name Entered office Left office Party
Karl Seitz, President of the Provisional National Assembly 21 October 1918 4 March 1919 SDAP
Jodok Fink/Johann Nepomuk Hauser, President 21 October 1918 4 March 1919 CS
Franz Dinghofer, President 21 October 1918 4 March 1919 GDVP
Karl Seitz, President of the Constituent National Assembly 4 March 1919 10 November 1920 SDAP

First Austrian Republic

Name Entered office Left office Party
Richard Weiskirchner 10 November 1920 19 November 1923 CS
Wilhelm Miklas 20 November 1923 6 December 1928 CS
Alfred Gürtler 13 December 1928 1 October 1930 CS
Matthias Eldersch 4 December 1930 20 April 1931 SDAP
Karl Renner 29 April 1931 4 March 1933 SDAP

Source: [1]

Second Republic

Name Entered Office Left Office Party
Leopold Kunschak 19 December 1945 13 March 1953 ÖVP
Felix Hurdes 18 March 1953 8 June 1959 ÖVP
Leopold Figl 9 June 1959 5 February 1962 ÖVP
Alfred Maleta 14 February 1962 30 March 1970 ÖVP
Karl Waldbrunner 31 March 1970 3 November 1971 SPÖ
Anton Benya 4 November 1971 16 December 1986 SPÖ
Leopold Gratz 17 December 1986 23 February 1989 SPÖ
Rudolf Pöder 28 February 1989 4 November 1990 SPÖ
Heinz Fischer 5 November 1990 19 December 2002 SPÖ
Andreas Khol 20 December 2002 29 October 2006 ÖVP
Barbara Prammer 30 October 2006 2 August 2014 SPÖ
Doris Bures 2 September 2014 8 November 2017 SPÖ
Elisabeth Köstinger 9 November 2017 17 December 2017 ÖVP
Wolfgang Sobotka 20 December 2017 present ÖVP

Source: [1]

List of second presidents[edit]

Doris Bures, Second President of the National Council

First Austrian Republic

Name Entered Office Left Office Party
Matthias Eldersch 10. November 1920 14. Dezember 1920 SDAP
Karl Seitz 1920 1923 SDAP
Matthias Eldersch 1923 1930 SDAP
Rudolf Ramek 1930 1933 CS

Second Republic

Name Entered Office Left Office Party
Johann Böhm 1945 1959 SPÖ
Franz Olah 1959 1961 SPÖ
Friedrich Hillegeist 1961 1962 SPÖ
Karl Waldbrunner 1962 1970 SPÖ
Alfred Maleta 1970 1975 ÖVP
Roland Minkowitsch 1975 1986 ÖVP
Marga Hubinek 1986 1990 ÖVP
Robert Lichal 1990 1994 ÖVP
Heinrich Neisser 1994 1999 ÖVP
Thomas Prinzhorn 1999 2002 FPÖ
Heinz Fischer 2002 2004 SPÖ
Barbara Prammer 2004 2006 SPÖ
Michael Spindelegger 2006 2008 ÖVP
Fritz Neugebauer 2008– 2013 ÖVP
Karlheinz Kopf 2013 2017 ÖVP
Doris Bures 2017 present SPÖ

List of third presidents[edit]

Norbert Hofer, Third President of the National Council

First Austrian Republic

Name Entered Office Left Office Party
Franz Dinghofer 1920 1926 GDVP
Leopold Waber 1926 1930 GDVP
Sepp Straffner 1930 1931 GDVP
Stephan Tauschitz 1931 1932 LBd
Sepp Straffner 1932 1933 GDVP

Second Republic

Name Entered Office Left Office Party
Alfons Gorbach 1945 1953 ÖVP
Karl Hartleb 1953 1956 WdU
Alfons Gorbach 1956 1961 ÖVP
Alfred Maleta 1961 1962 ÖVP
Josef Wallner 1962 1970 ÖVP
Otto Probst 1970 1978 SPÖ
Herbert Pansi 1978 1979 SPÖ
Rudolf Thalhammer 1979 1983 SPÖ
Gerulf Stix 1983 1990 FPÖ
Siegfried Dillersberger 15 March 1990 4 November 1990 FPÖ
Heide Schmidt 1990 1994 FPÖ
Herbert Haupt 1994 1996 FPÖ
Willi Brauneder 1996 1999 FPÖ
Andreas Khol 1999 2000 ÖVP
Werner Fasslabend 2000 2002 ÖVP
Thomas Prinzhorn 2002 2006 FPÖ
Eva Glawischnig-Piesczek 2006 2008 Grüne
Martin Graf 2008 2013 FPÖ
Norbert Hofer 2013 2017 FPÖ
Anneliese Kitzmüller 2017 2019 FPÖ
Norbert Hofer 2019 present FPÖ

See also[edit]

References[edit]

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