Austria’s far-right party has been growing in popularity leading up to the Oct. 15 elections.
The Freedom Party (FPO) has increased their standing following the migration crisis in 2015, criticizing Austria’s ruling government of opening its borders and taking in too many refugees. Most refugees settled in Germany in 2015. However 90,000 refugees, which equals 1 percent of Austria’s population, remained according to Reuters.
The two other parties, the Social Democrats and People’s Party have begun adopting the anti-Islam positions of the Freedom Party. Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, leader of the People’s Party, called for migrants rescued in the Mediterranean to be taken to Africa instead of Europe. He also voiced opposition to Muslim kindergartens, the same platform as the Freedom Party. Chancellor Christian Kern of the Social Democrats supports limiting the amount of refugees from Africa by 2020 and plans on implementing measures to favor local workers over foreign rivals.
The Czech Republic also introduced a new bill to curb economic migration, Thursday.