Pressure on Faymann as Pröll is ahead of chancellor in poll
The pressure on Social Democratic (SPÖ) Chancellor Werner Faymann is increasing as new research reveals he has been overtaken by Peoples Party (ÖVP) Vice Chancellor Josef Pröll in popularity.Research firm Karmasin found out 27 per cent of Austrians would support Pröll if they could elect the chancellor by direct vote but only 24 per cent would vote for Faymann.Greens leader Eva Glawischnig would have the support of six per cent, while Freedom Party (FPÖ) chief Heinz-Christian Strache would garner just five per cent, the agency found out in its poll for magazine profil.Pröll also beat Faymann in a separate poll conducted by the Viennese research agency for profil.Asked who would be their favourite chancellor today Pröll, Faymann or his predecessors, the SPÖs Alfred Gusenbauer and former ÖVP Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel Pröll comes in first with the support of 21 per cent. Faymann garners 20 per cent, while Schüssel has the support of ten per cent.Only eight per cent opted for Gusenbauer, who was in office for under two years. Karmasin said 26 per cent of the people it had interviewed had said they would opt for none of the four politicians.The results could be regarded as a continuation of the downward spiral of the SPÖ and Faymann as the party has suffered losses in all federal and provincial elections since the former infrastructure minister took over as its leader.