KLAGENFURT, Austria — Far-right politician Joerg Haider, whose rising popularity in Austria a few years ago rattled much of Europe, is now battling to hang on to power in upcoming elections here in his southern stronghold.
Haider's Freedom Party has suffered a series of defeats in recent years. And although Haider, 54, has repeatedly bounced back during his turbulent political career, Sunday's parliamentary election in the Alpine province of Carinthia is seen by Austrian political observers as his last chance to remain a player in domestic and European politics.
"For Haider, this is the most important election," said Antonia Goessinger, head of the Carinthian politics department at Kleine Zeitung daily newspaper. "The Freedom Party has lost dramatically across the country, and he needs to show that he can be a success on his home ground."
In late January, polls indicated that the Carinthian Freedom Party, led by Haider, who also is governor of the province, was far behind the front-runner. Some surveys showed the party with as little as 29% of the vote, compared with about 40% for the Social Democrats.
Haider's relentless campaigning in the last month has narrowed the gap to a few percentage points. A Gallup Austria poll indicated that about 15% of voters were undecided 10 days before the vote.
Haider gained notoriety across Europe for his xenophobic rhetoric and veiled comments widely viewed as anti-Semitic. He denies that he is anti-Semitic.
In 2000, Haider's party joined a coalition federal government led by the conservative People's Party. He was considered such a threat that fellow European Union members temporarily suspended diplomatic ties with Austria, and Israel withdrew its ambassador.
He stepped down as head of the Austrian Freedom Party after the imposition of the EU sanctions, but remained a potent force. In late 2002, he engineered a revolt within his party that ended the coalition with the People's Party and led to early elections.
Austrians appeared tired of Haider, however; in the November 2002 vote, support for the Freedom Party fell from 27% to just 10%, although the party remained in government as a junior partner. In regional elections in the provinces of Tyrol and Upper Austria last year, the Freedom Party finished last among four parties.
Haider is not expected to hold onto the 42% that his party won in the last Carinthian elections in 1999, but this year's vote offers him a chance to defy national trends and retain influence in national politics.
