A FAR-RIGHT Austrian presidential candidate has been narrowly defeated in his bid to become the EU’s first anti-immigrant leader.
Norbert Hofer, of the Freedom Party (FPOe), was neck-and-neck with independent candidate Alexander Van der Bellen with the polls putting both men at 50 per cent of the vote.
But after the final 900,000 postal votes were counted, Austrian media reported Van der Bellen had emerged as the winner.
The Austrian Interior Ministry said Hofer received 49.7 per cent of the vote while Van der Bellen received 50.3 per cent in an election run-off.
Writing on his Facebook page Hofer told his supporters their work during the election is ‘an investment in the future’ and said: “Of course I am sad today.
“I would have liked to take care of our wonderful country for you as president.”
Hofer had won a lot of support because voters have become increasingly dissatisfied with the ruling coalition, of the Social Democrats and the conservative People’s Party.
His promise of ‘putting Austria first’ was a big hit, especially with the growing fear of migrants.
He had threatened to fire the government if it did not get tougher on migrants and had told voters ‘Islam has no place in Austria’.
Mail Online reports election experts had suggested the 900,000 postal votes would favour Hofer as they were more likely to be cast by older people who are more right-wing.
The influx of asylum-seekers, rising unemployment and frozen reforms have all contributed to voters being pushed away from the two centrist parties that have dominated Austrian politics since 1945.
Candidates backed by the Social Democratic Party and People's Party were knocked out in the first round of voting, which happened last month.
This meant it was the first time a politician from either party was not going to be president since the end of the Second World War.
At his final rally on Friday, Van der Bellen said he was for 'an open, Europe-friendly, Europe-conscious Austria'.
And as he arrived to vote today he told journalists there were big differences between him and his far-right opponent.
He said: “I think I'm pro-European and there are some doubts as far as Mr Hofer is concerned.”
In his last pre-election rally Hofer pushed his anti-Muslim agenda, by saying: “To those in Austria who go to war for the Islamic State or rape women - I say to those people: 'This is not your home'.”
The gun enthusiast, who was described as the ‘friendly face’ of the far-right, denied he would have posed a risk as president.
On Sunday, after voting in his home town of Pinkafeld, he told reporters: “I am not a dangerous person.”
Political parties across Europe watched the election with interest, not just because of how close Austria almost came to electing a right-wing leader.
It was also seen as more evidence of the growing popularity of Eurosceptic parties at the expense of the establishment.
If Hofer had won it may have isolated Austria politically, with EU Commission President warning before the vote “there will be no debate or dialogue with the far-right’.
Other European governments may have not wanted to welcome him to their countries and he may have been snubbed in the Middle East due to the anti-Muslim campaigning.
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