He criticized the poisoned political mood in Vienna and praised the consensus-oriented politics in his state. In contrast to federal politics, one would pull together in Upper Austria, where mayor, municipal council and state elections take place in 75 days. “I see myself as a climate protector, also when it comes to the political climate. In Upper Austria we passed 97 percent of the resolutions unanimously. We are trying because we believe that people want us to pull together,” said Stelzer. The hiccup, however, is not appreciated.
Vaccination appeal and warning
In his short welcome speech, Stelzer naturally also addressed the pandemic and, in contrast to some statements from the federal ÖVP, saw neither “summer like back then” and “no normalcy”. The virus does not go away that quickly and defends itself properly by mutating again and again. “We have to get vaccinated more widely,” he appealed to the population to get vaccinated. At the beginning there was a big momentum, but now it is stagnating, according to Stelzer, in whose federal state the vaccination campaign is progressing relatively slowly. “We are now starting to carry the vaccination after people too.” If the vaccination rate does not increase, there will be restrictions again in autumn or winter, warned Stelzer.
The governor also announced that he wanted to use the corona crisis for sustainable development. “We don’t want to miss anything and have launched an investment package for Upper Austria. In addition to broadband expansion, we are investing in infrastructure and research.
ÖVP regional manager Wolfgang Hattmannsdorfer quoted from a survey that Stelzer enjoyed great trust in Upper Austria. According to this, 82 percent of the population are satisfied with state politics, but almost half are dissatisfied with federal politics. 77 percent are satisfied with the governor and his work and 59 percent would directly elect him as governor.
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