This is a list of all the presidents who have served Austria from 1920 till date:
President | Took Office | Left Office | Party |
|---|---|---|---|
Michael Hainisch | 9 December 1920 | 10 December 1928 | Independent |
Wilhelm Miklas | 10 December 1928 | 13 March 1938 | CS VF |
Karl Renner | 20 December 1945 | 31 December 1950 | SPÖ |
Leopold Figl | 31 December 1950 | 21 June 1951 | ÖVP |
Theodor Körner | 21 June 1951 | 4 January 1957 | SPÖ |
Julius Raab | 4 January 1957 | 22 May 1957 | ÖVP |
Adolf Schärf | 22 May 1957 | 28 February 1965 | SPÖ |
Josef Klaus | 28 February 1965 | 9 June 1965 | ÖVP |
Franz Jonas | 9 June 1965 | 24 April 1974 | SPÖ |
Bruno Kreisky | 24 April 1974 | 8 July 1974 | SPÖ |
Rudolf Kirchschläger | 8 July 1974 | 8 July 1986 | Independent |
Kurt Waldheim | 8 July 1986 | 8 July 1992 | ÖVP |
Thomas Klestil | 8 July 1992 | 6 July 2004 | ÖVP |
Andreas Khol | 6 July 2004 | 8 July 2004 | ÖVP |
Barbara Prammer | 6 July 2004 | 8 July 2004 | SPÖ |
Thomas Prinzhorn | 6 July 2004 | 8 July 2004 | FPÖ |
Heinz Fischer | 8 July 2004 | 8 July 2016 | SPÖ |
Doris Bures | 8 July 2016 | 26 January 2017 | SPÖ |
Karlheinz Kopf | 8 July 2016 | 26 January 2017 | ÖVP |
Norbert Hofer | 8 July 2016 | 26 January 2017 | FPÖ |
Alexander Van der Bellen | 26 January 2017 | Incumbent | Independent, Greens |
READ ALSO: List Of All Prime Ministers Of New Zealand (1856-Present)
Who Was The First President Of Austria?
Michael Hainisch was the first president of Austria, began his presidency on December 9, 1920, and served until December 10, 1928. He was the first person to hold this position in the newly formed First Republic of Austria.
This republic was created after World War I when the Austro-Hungarian Empire broke apart. Michael Hainisch was born on August 15, 1858, in Graz, a city in Austria, where he had a varied career as a lawyer and politician.
He was active in different political groups and served in the Austrian National Assembly. The role of the president in Austria was set up after the end of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which Austria needed a new way of governing.
And the president’s job was mostly ceremonial. During Hainisch’s presidency, Austria faced many challenges. The country was trying to rebuild after the war, and there were economic problems and political unrest.
Hainisch worked to stabilize the young republic and keep peace among the different political groups, like the Social Democrats and the Christian Social Party. He was an independent politician and aimed to stay neutral among these groups.
READ ALSO: List Of All Prime Ministers Of New Zealand (1856-Present)
Who was the president of Austria before Anschluss?
Before the Anschluss, which was the event when Austria was taken over by Nazi Germany on March 12, 1938, the president of Austria was Wilhelm Miklas.
He was in office from December 10, 1928, until the annexation. Miklas was a member of the Christian Social Party, a political group that played a notable part in Austrian politics during his time.
Wilhelm Miklas was born on October 15, 1872. He had a background in law and politics, which helped him in his political career. However, he was a member of the Austrian parliament and held various important government positions, before his presidency.
But then his presidency was a challenging period for Austria, seen to political instability and the rise of extremist movements. When Miklas started his term as president, Austria was relatively stable. As time went on, the country faced many problems.
The Great Depression brought economic difficulties, and there was growing pressure from both the Austrian Nazis and the Fatherland Front, a conservative group with authoritarian ideas.
The government became more authoritarian, especially under Chancellor Engelbert Dollfuss, who ruled with strong control and limited the power of the parliament. During his presidency, Miklas’s role was mostly ceremonial.
The real power lay with the chancellor and the parliament. Despite this, Miklas tried to handle the complicated political situation by trying to balance the different political groups, including the rising Nazi movement.
His presidency ended suddenly with the Anschluss in 1938. After Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany, the position of president was abolished, and Miklas lost all power.
Who Is The Current President Of Austria?
The current president of Austria is Alexander Van der Bellen, and he has held this position since January 26, 2017. Van der Bellen was re-elected in October 2022, serving as president for another six years.
His election brought a change in Austrian politics, as he is the first president not from the Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) or the People’s Party (ÖVP) since Austria started electing its president by popular vote in 1951.
Van der Bellen had a notable career in both academia and politics. He was a professor of economics at the University of Vienna, where he also served as Deputy Dean and Dean of the School of Social and Economic Sciences.
In the 1990s, he began his political career, joining the National Council, Austria’s parliament. He served from 1994 to 2012, and he was also the Federal Spokesperson for the Green Party from 1997 to 2008 and led the Greens’ parliamentary group.