Chancellor of Austria

Chancellor of the Republic of Austria
Coat of arms
Incumbent Werner Faymann since 12 December 2008
Residence	Ballhausplatz 2
Appointer	Heinz Fischer, as President of Austria
Term length	No term limit
Inaugural holder	Karl Renner, 12 November 1918
Formation	First Austrian Republic, 12 November 1918
Website	www.bundeskanzler.at

Austria

This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Austria

Constitution Constitution of Austria Executive President (List) Heinz Fischer Federal Government Chancellor (List) Werner Faymann Vice-Chancellor Michael Spindelegger Cabinet Parliament Parliament/Federal Assembly National Council Federal Council Political parties Elections 2010 presidential 2008 legislative 2006 legislative 2004 presidential 2002 legislative 1999 legislative 1998 presidential Decentralized gov't States (Länder) Landtage Districts Foreign policy Foreign relations Politics of the European Union

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The Federal Chancellor (German: Bundeskanzler) is the head of government in Austria. Its deputy is the Vice-Chancellor. Before 1918, the equivalent office was the Minister-President of Austria. The Federal Chancellor (also known more simply as the Chancellor) is considered to be the most powerful political position in Austrian politics.

Appointment

The Chancellor is appointed by the President of Austria. The Chancellor assumes his office immediately after the appointment and is sworn in by the president.

In theory, the President can select anyone he wishes to be Chancellor. In practice, since the National Council has the right to pass a motion of no confidence in the government at any time, the Chancellor is always the leader of the majority party in the chamber or the biggest party in the governing coalition.

Role and powers

The Chancellor is "primus inter pares" ("first among equals") in the Austrian government. He chairs the meetings of the Austrian government but has no power to instruct other Federal Ministers. He is not the head of state, nor is he the commander in chief of the Austrian Armed Forces. Both roles are vested with the Federal President. The Chancellor cannot appoint nor dismiss other federal ministers. He can only recommend such an action to the Federal President, who may then appoint or dismiss a minister. However, it has become a very strong constitutional convention for the President to act on the Chancellor's advice. Furthermore the Chancellor normally also heads a federal ministry. Thus, although considered as the most powerful political position in Austria, he has a much weaker standing than the United States President or the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

The political power of the Chancellor mainly derives from his power in his political party, which he normally chairs, and can vary a lot depending on whether there is a coalition or a single-party cabinet. Normally the Chancellor is the leader of the biggest party in the Austrian parliament, however the Federal President is free to appoint any other person also. In 2000 the Federal president appointed Wolfgang Schüssel although his party then had only been 3rd in the previous elections.

List of Chancellors of Austria

Main article: List of Chancellors of Austria

See also

• Politics of Austria
• List of Chancellors of Austria
• Vice-Chancellor of Austria
• President of Austria
• List of Federal Presidents of Austria
• Lists of incumbents
• List of Ministers-President of Austria
• List of Austrian Chancellors by Longevity

External links

• Official site of the Austrian Bundeskanzler

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Name	Austria, Chancellor Of
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