VIENNA (Reuters) - Austria’s president on Sunday recommended a new election be held in early September, saying he wanted to restore trust in the government after a video scandal led to the resignation of the vice chancellor.

Chancellor Sebastian Kurz pulled the plug on the coalition and called for a snap election on Saturday after his deputy, Heinz-Christian Strache, the leader of the far-right Freedom Party, quit over a video showed him discussing fixing state contracts in return for favors.

It is most important that Austrians are given the chance of a new start to rebuild trust in its government, President Alexander van der Bellen said in a statement at his Hofburg residence in Vienna.

“This new beginning should take place quickly, as quickly as the provisions of the Federal Constitution permit, so I plead for elections... in September, if possible at the beginning of September,” the president said.

Strache has described the video sting as a “targeted political assassination” and said it never led to any money changing hands. He insisted the only crime that took place was illegally videotaping a private dinner party.

Van der Bellen and Kurz said at their joint news conference that stability was a main priority for them for the coming months.

Kurz repeated that he saw the snap elections as the only way to solve the crisis. “The new elections were a necessity, not a wish,” he said.

The make up of a caretaker government remained unclear a day after the 18-month-old coalition of conservatives and the far right collapsed. </s> VIENNA (AP) — Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz is calling for a new election after his vice chancellor resigned due to scandal. </s> Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz called for snap elections after his junior coalition partner stumbled over a video showing its leader promising government contracts in return for campaign funding.

“Enough is enough,” Kurz said on Saturday evening in Vienna, adding he wants elections as “soon as possible.”

Heinz-Christian Strache stepped down as vice chancellor and head of the nationalist Freedom Party earlier in the day, calling his actions depicted on the video “dumb” and “embarrassing.”

Strache said he resigned to rescue the coalition with Kurz’s conservative People’s Party, but ultimately this proved to be insufficient. Elections can be held in August at the earliest. Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen, who’s in charge of appointing and dismissing governments, will speak later tonight.

The result of the ballot could leave Kurz, the European Union’s youngest leader, in an awkward situation: He’s likely to win the ballot, but not by a margin large enough to govern alone. A new coalition with the Freedom Party may not be possible after the video scandal, be it for lack of votes or backing in Kurz’s People’s Party.

At the same time, the chancellor has burnt bridges to the opposition Social Democrats, with whom his party governed in most previous coalitions since the Second World War. Kurz built his rise to power on breaking with that tradition, so returning to the fold might hurt his credibility.

The People’s Party first attempt to govern with the Freedom Party failed in 2002 after just two years and snap elections ended with victory for the conservatives and defeat for the nationalists. There may be hopes in the party to repeat that stint.

The footage from a 2017 meeting in Ibiza with a woman claiming to be the niece of a Russian oligarch was obtained by German publications Der Spiegel and Sueddeutsche Zeitung. Spiegel didn’t disclose how it obtained the video and said it doesn’t know the motives of the people who made it.

Strache, speaking after handing in his resignation to Kurz in Vienna on Saturday, confirmed the Ibiza meeting while saying he did nothing illegal. He said he pointed out to the woman in the video that Austrian laws had to be obeyed, and that he never received donations from her or gave her any business.

The video was shot illegally and “this was a targeted attempt of political assassination, this was hired work,” Strache told reporters. He already appeared to be in campaign mode in his resignation press conference, praising the government’s achievements. “I want to provide no pretense whatsoever by my misbehavior to bring down this government.”

Austria’s Audit Court said Saturday it would question the Freedom Party’s finances related to the video. Christian Pilnacek of the Justice Ministry told Kurier newspaper that prosecutors will be examining the video. The Freedom Party denies any wrongdoing.

With assistance from Jonathan Tirone and Patrick Donahue. </s> Austria‘s president on Sunday recommended a new election be held in early September, saying he wanted to restore trust in the government after a video scandal led to the resignation of the vice chancellor.

Chancellor Sebastian Kurz pulled the plug on the coalition and called for a snap election on Saturday after his deputy, Heinz-Christian Strache, the leader of the far-right Freedom Party, quit over a video showed him discussing fixing state contracts in return for favours.

“It is most important that Austrians are given the chance of a new start to rebuild trust in its government,” President Alexander van der Bellen said in a statement at his Hofburg residence in Vienna.

READ MORE: Austrian vice chancellor steps down over video as coalition teeters

“This new beginning should take place quickly, as quickly as the provisions of the Federal Constitution permit, so I plead for elections… in September, if possible at the beginning of September,” the president said.

Strache has described the video sting as a “targeted political assassination” and said it never led to any money changing hands. He insisted the only crime that took place was illegally videotaping a private dinner party.

Van der Bellen and Kurz said at their joint news conference that stability was a main priority for them for the coming months.

Kurz repeated that he saw the snap elections as the only way to solve the crisis. “The new elections were a necessity, not a wish,” he said.

The makeup of a caretaker government remained unclear a day after the 18-month-old coalition of conservatives and the far right collapsed. </s> Austria's president has recommended a new election be held in early September, saying he wants to restore trust in the government after a video scandal led to the resignation of the vice chancellor.

Chancellor Sebastian Kurz pulled the plug on the coalition and called for a snap election on Saturday after his deputy, Heinz-Christian Strache, the leader of the far-right Freedom Party, quit over a video showed him discussing fixing state contracts in return for favours.

It is most important that Austrians are given the chance of a new start to rebuild trust in its government, President Alexander van der Bellen said in a statement at his Hofburg residence in Vienna.

"This new beginning should take place quickly, as quickly as the provisions of the Federal Constitution permit, so I plead for elections ... in September, if possible at the beginning of September," the president said.

Strache has described the video sting as a "targeted political assassination" and said it never led to any money changing hands. He insisted the only crime that took place was illegally videotaping a private dinner party.

Van der Bellen and Kurz said at their joint news conference that stability was a main priority for them for the coming months.

Kurz repeated that he saw the snap elections as the only way to solve the crisis. "The new elections were a necessity, not a wish," he said.

The make-up of a caretaker government remained unclear a day after the 18-month-old coalition of conservatives and the far right collapsed. </s> Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz is calling for a new election after his vice chancellor resigned due to scandal

VIENNA (AP) — Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz is calling for a new election after his vice chancellor resigned due to scandal. </s> Austria's conservative Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has dissolved his coalition with the far-right Freedom Party after the resignation of vice-chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache amid a corruption scandal.

“Enough is enough,” Kurz told the media, listing a string of other minor scandals involving the Freedom Party, adding that he would recommend to President Alexander Van der Bellen that snap elections be held as quickly as possible.

Vice-chancellor Strache, a key figure of the European far-right, announced his resignation on Saturday following revelations that he had promised public contracts in return for help from a fake Russian backer during his campaign in the 2017 parliamentary elections.

Strache denounced what he called an illegal "targeted political attack", but said he would quit in order to avoid further damage to the government.

Germany's Der Spiegel and Sueddeutsche Zeitung released hidden video footage of a sting operation allegedly filmed at a luxury villa on the Spanish island of Ibiza, months before Austria's 2017's elections.

Strache and his Freedom Party's group leader in parliament, Johann Gudenus, are seen in duscussions with a woman purporting to be the niece of a Russian oligarch, who says she wants control of Austria's largest-circulation tabloid, the Krone Zeitung.

Strache is seen suggesting that new owners could make staff changes at the Krone and use the paper to help his Freedom Party in its election campaign. </s> The Austrian government has lost a no-confidence vote in a special parliamentary session on Monday over the Ibiza corruption scandal.

Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, leader of the conservative People's Party (ÖVP), was the first Austrian chancellor to lose a confidence vote in post-war history. </s> Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz ousted by the Austrian Parliament. He was ousted as he lost the no confidence in a special Parliamentary session.

His previous coalition ally, the far-right Freedom Party (FPÖ) and the opposition Social Democrats (SPÖ) backed the no-confidence motions. The FPÖ had become embroiled in a political scandal caused by a secret video, which ended the coalition.

Opposition parties brought forward the two no-confidence votes – one against Kurz and the other against his government. Austria’s President Alexander Van der Bellen named Vice Chancellor Hartwig Löger as the interim leader. Löger will serve until a new transitional government can be appointed ahead of elections expected in September.

Kurz, head of the conservative Austrian People’s Party, is the first Chancellor in post-war Austrian history to lose a confidence vote. He was the world’s youngest state leader when elected in 2017, at 31.

Kurz’s surprisingly strong showing in recent European Union elections – with a projected 35% of the vote – was not enough to save him.
Sebastian Kurz, Chancellor of Austria, announces the dissolution of his government and calls for a snap election.