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Roundup: Austrian president-elect calls for unity, extends lead after final vote count

Xinhua, December 7, 2016 Adjust font size:

Austrian President-elect Alexander Van der Bellen on Tuesday addressed the nation, calling for the country to come together.

The speech was his first following the release of the final results of Sunday's election by the interior ministry earlier on Tuesday, that saw him take 53.8 percent of the vote.

Van der Bellen congratulated opponent Norbert Hofer from the right-wing Freedom Party, noting he had achieved a respectable result. He extended a hand to Hofer's voters for unity, saying "Austria is what we are together."

The former Greens party leader reiterated that he would serve as a president for all Austrians, irrespective of whom they voted for, and that he wants to put common ground before that which separates.

The final vote count for Sunday's Austrian presidential election, that have not yet been made official by the interior ministry, show Van der Bellen extending his lead from what would otherwise have been 51.7 percent of the vote.

The new total means about 2.47 million Austrians voted for the independent candidate, compared to 2.12 million for opponent Norbert Hofer.

The difference of 350,000 votes for the repeat election was much higher than the 31,000 votes that separated the two candidates during the initial run-off election on May 22. Voter participation was also high at 74.2 percent, the highest since 1998. It was contrary to speculation prior to the election that voter turnout would be relatively low.

Meanwhile, leaders of Austria's far-right Freedom Party (FPO) on Tuesday insisted they are still in a fighting spirit despite Sunday's presidential election setback, the Krone reported.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, losing candidate Norbert Hofer and FPO leader Heinz-Christian Strache said the party was moving on. Strache said efforts were focused on the upcoming general election that could take place as early as next year.

Strache called Hofer's election result "sensational" and argued that "the time was not yet ripe." The FPO has nonetheless established itself as a mass movement despite massive resistance and a media bias, he added. Enditem