# President of the National Council (Austria)

The president of the National Council is the presiding officer of the National Council, the lower house of the Austrian Parliament.
Since October 2024, Walter Rosenkranz (FPÖ) has served as President of the National Council, Peter Haubner (ÖVP) as Second President, and Doris Bures (SPÖ) as Third President. The three presidents together form the Presidium of the National Council.
In the Austrian order of precedence, the president of the National Council places after the president of Austria and before the chancellor.

## Election

The president, the second and the third president are elected by the majority of the National Council at the beginning of each legislative session.
The Presidium even remains active after the dissolution of the National Council, until the Council obtains its new elected leadership. This also applies if the president of the former legislative session has no mandate in the new session.
In the second republic it became a political practice that the most powerful party receives the president and the second and third most powerful party the second and third president.

## Tasks and duties

The exact tasks of the president and his deputies are determined in the Nationalratsgeschäftsordnung. He is in charge of the administrative affairs of the National Council and creates a budget concept for the Council with the second and third president. The president is the representative of national council for the public and has to ensure moderation and balanced rights. He handles the Geschäftsordnung and has to guarantee for its observance (especially for the maintenance silence and order and the meeting hall), he exercises the Hausrecht in the Austrian Parliament Building and heads the parliamentary directorate.
The three presidents and the parliamentary leaders together form the Präsidialkonferenz, a communicative organisation responsible for amiable cooperation under the parties within the Council.
The Presidium assumes the tasks of the Federal President in case of a longer during prevention or permanent suspension, for example because of death, a resignation or a deposition. This should ensure that overseeing tasks towards the Government and other duties are not lost.

## List of officeholders
### List of presidents

National Assembly
| Name | Entered office | Left office | Party |
| Karl Seitz, President of the Provisional National Assembly | 21 October 1918 | 4 March 1919 | SDAP |
| Jodok Fink/Johann Nepomuk Hauser, President | 21 October 1918 | 4 March 1919 | CS |
| Franz Dinghofer, President | 21 October 1918 | 4 March 1919 | GDVP |
| Karl Seitz, President of the Constituent National Assembly | 4 March 1919 | 10 November 1920 | SDAP |
First Austrian Republic
| Name | Entered office | Left office | Party |
| Richard Weiskirchner | 10 November 1920 | 19 November 1923 | CS |
| Wilhelm Miklas | 20 November 1923 | 6 December 1928 | CS |
| Alfred Gürtler | 13 December 1928 | 1 October 1930 | CS |
| Matthias Eldersch | 4 December 1930 | 20 April 1931 | SDAP |
| Karl Renner | 29 April 1931 | 4 March 1933 | SDAP |
Source:
Second Republic
| Name | Entered Office | Left Office | Party |
| Leopold Kunschak | 19 December 1945 | 13 March 1953 | ÖVP |
| Felix Hurdes | 18 March 1953 | 8 June 1959 | ÖVP |
| Leopold Figl | 9 June 1959 | 5 February 1962 | ÖVP |
| Alfred Maleta | 14 February 1962 | 30 March 1970 | ÖVP |
| Karl Waldbrunner | 31 March 1970 | 3 November 1971 | SPÖ |
| Anton Benya | 4 November 1971 | 16 December 1986 | SPÖ |
| Leopold Gratz | 17 December 1986 | 23 February 1989 | SPÖ |
| Rudolf Pöder | 28 February 1989 | 4 November 1990 | SPÖ |
| Heinz Fischer | 5 November 1990 | 19 December 2002 | SPÖ |
| Andreas Khol | 20 December 2002 | 29 October 2006 | ÖVP |
| Barbara Prammer | 30 October 2006 | 2 August 2014 | SPÖ |
| Doris Bures | 2 September 2014 | 8 November 2017 | SPÖ |
| Elisabeth Köstinger | 9 November 2017 | 17 December 2017 | ÖVP |
| Wolfgang Sobotka | 20 December 2017 | 24 October 2024 | ÖVP |
| Walter Rosenkranz | 24 October 2024 | present | FPÖ |
Source:

### List of second presidents

First Austrian Republic
| Name | Entered Office | Left Office | Party |
| Matthias Eldersch | 10. November 1920 | 14. Dezember 1920 | SDAP |
| Karl Seitz | 1920 | 1923 | SDAP |
| Matthias Eldersch | 1923 | 1930 | SDAP |
| Rudolf Ramek | 1930 | 1933 | CS |
Second Republic
| Name | Entered Office | Left Office | Party |
| Johann Böhm | 1945 | 1959 | SPÖ |
| Franz Olah | 1959 | 1961 | SPÖ |
| Friedrich Hillegeist | 1961 | 1962 | SPÖ |
| Karl Waldbrunner | 1962 | 1970 | SPÖ |
| Alfred Maleta | 1970 | 1975 | ÖVP |
| Roland Minkowitsch | 1975 | 1986 | ÖVP |
| Marga Hubinek | 1986 | 1990 | ÖVP |
| Robert Lichal | 1990 | 1994 | ÖVP |
| Heinrich Neisser | 1994 | 1999 | ÖVP |
| Thomas Prinzhorn | 1999 | 2002 | FPÖ |
| Heinz Fischer | 2002 | 2004 | SPÖ |
| Barbara Prammer | 2004 | 2006 | SPÖ |
| Michael Spindelegger | 2006 | 2008 | ÖVP |
| Fritz Neugebauer | 2008 | 2013 | ÖVP |
| Karlheinz Kopf | 2013 | 2017 | ÖVP |
| Doris Bures | 2017 | 2024 | SPÖ |
| Peter Haubner | 2024 | present | ÖVP |

### List of third presidents

First Austrian Republic
| Name | Entered Office | Left Office | Party |
| Franz Dinghofer | 1920 | 1926 | GDVP |
| Leopold Waber | 1926 | 1930 | GDVP |
| Sepp Straffner | 1930 | 1931 | GDVP |
| Stephan Tauschitz | 1931 | 1932 | LBd |
| Sepp Straffner | 1932 | 1933 | GDVP |
Second Republic
| Name | Entered Office | Left Office | Party |
| Alfons Gorbach | 1945 | 1953 | ÖVP |
| Karl Hartleb | 1953 | 1956 | WdU |
| Alfons Gorbach | 1956 | 1961 | ÖVP |
| Alfred Maleta | 1961 | 1962 | ÖVP |
| Josef Wallner | 1962 | 1970 | ÖVP |
| Otto Probst | 1970 | 1978 | SPÖ |
| Herbert Pansi | 1978 | 1979 | SPÖ |
| Rudolf Thalhammer | 1979 | 1983 | SPÖ |
| Gerulf Stix | 1983 | 1990 | FPÖ |
| Siegfried Dillersberger | 15 March 1990 | 4 November 1990 | FPÖ |
| Heide Schmidt | 1990 | 1994 | FPÖ |
| Herbert Haupt | 1994 | 1996 | FPÖ |
| Willi Brauneder | 1996 | 1999 | FPÖ |
| Andreas Khol | 1999 | 2000 | ÖVP |
| Werner Fasslabend | 2000 | 2002 | ÖVP |
| Thomas Prinzhorn | 2002 | 2006 | FPÖ |
| Eva Glawischnig-Piesczek | 2006 | 2008 | Grüne |
| Martin Graf | 2008 | 2013 | FPÖ |
| Norbert Hofer | 2013 | 2017 | FPÖ |
| Anneliese Kitzmüller | 2017 | 2019 | FPÖ |
| Norbert Hofer | 2019 | 2024 | FPÖ |
| Doris Bures | 2024 | present | SPÖ |