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Austria Page |
Welcome to ElectionInfo.com's pages on Austria
Official Name: Republic of Austria
Capital: Vienna
Area: 83,850 square kilometres ( 32,375 square miles )
Major cities (Population)
Vienna 1,539,848 (1991)
Graz 237,810 (1991)
Linz 203,044 (1991)
Salzburg 143,978 (1991)
Innsbruck 118,112 (1991)
Population: 7,968,000 (1995 estimate)
Population growth rate: 0.7 per cent (1990-1995 average)
Type of government: Federal republic
Independence: 12 November 1918 (from Austro-Hungarian Empire)
Constitution: 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945)
Voting Rights: Universal at age 19; compulsory for presidential elections
Government
The federal government, which shares power with each of the nine provinces, is composed of a federal president who is the ceremonial head of state, a federal chancellor, the chancellor’s cabinet, and the two-chamber federal assembly, which consists of a 183-member national council (Nationalrat) and a 63-member federal council (Bundesrat). The two chambers sometimes join together to deliberate over particularly important matters; when combined in this way, the two chambers are referred to as the Bundesversammlung. The voting age is 19. For presidential elections, voting is mandatory. Three types of high court have jurisdiction over justice, administration, and the constitution.
Because of Austria’s foreign policy of neutrality and its proximity to Eastern Europe, Vienna has become a key city where nations meet to discuss problems or negotiate treaties.
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