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1st LD: Candidate backed by Green Party wins Austrian presidential election: Interior Ministry

Xinhua, May 24, 2016 Adjust font size:

Alexander Van der Bellen, an independent candidate but backed by the Green Party, was elected as Austrian president in the election, gaining only slightly more votes than the right-wing candidate Norbert Hofer, Interior Minister Wolfgang Sobotka announced on Monday.

In the neck-and-neck race, Van der Bellen won 50.3 percent of the votes to Hofer's 49.7 percent. The intense presidential election was the main focus of the central EU country.

Hofer announced his failure on Facebook, saying: "I will remain loyal to you in making a contribution to a positive Austria. Please do not be discouraged, the use of this election campaign is not lost but an investment for the future."

Although the right-wing party failed to gain access to the presidential office, the election shows a split of the German-speaking EU state from the mainstream politic map.

And Van der Bellen has become the first president of the state since World War II who is not backed by the mainstay ruling parties. Endit