NEOS presents new team for Vienna's future in the local council!

NEOS presents new team for Vienna's future in the local council!

Today, June 10, 2025, the new Vienna municipal council and state parliament were constituted in a ceremonial setting in the town hall. The NEOS presented their fresh team for the coming legislative period. Selma Arapović was elected club chairwoman, with Markus Ornig and Stefan Gara as her deputies. Philipp Blass took over the role of club director. The NEOS were able to achieve 10% of the votes in the Vienna election, which resulted in a pleasing increase in the size of the town hall club. Vice Mayor Bettina Emmerling and six representatives from the last term also remain represented in the local council and state parliament.

New to the NEOS Town Hall Club are Jing Hu, Maria In der Maur-Koenne, Lukas Burian and Arabel Bernecker-Thiel. Jing Hu, a trained pharmacist and restaurateur, is the first NEOS candidate to enter the local council with a basic mandate. Maria In der Maur-Koenne brings her experience as a lawyer to family and inheritance law advice, while Lukas Burian, who works as a channel manager in the ÖGK's digitalization program, is passionately committed to the rainbow community. Arabel Bernecker-Thiel, a political scientist with a focus on migration policy, is also an asset to the team.

Government restructuring and coalition program

The constituent meeting took place parallel to the swearing-in of 100 local councilors and the election of the city councilors. In his government statement, Mayor Michael Ludwig of the SPÖ spoke of a stable red-pink coalition that remains close to the old line-up. New to the ranks of city councilors is Barbara Novak, who succeeds Peter Hanke as economics and finance councilor. The distribution of seats in the city parliament shows the SPÖ with 43 seats, followed by the FPÖ with 22 seats, the Greens with 15 and the NEOS with 10 seats, which means an increase of two mandates. The ÖVP is also faced with a loss of 12 seats to 10.

The new coalition program, which was presented in the coat of arms hall of the Vienna City Hall, is entitled “Upswing Coalition”. It faces the current challenges with a clear focus on economic stimulus and social cohesion. Investments in digitalization, technology and artificial intelligence are planned in order to establish Vienna as “Austria’s economic engine”. The aim is also to host the Eurovision Song Contest in 2026. When it comes to climate goals, the city has set itself the goal of becoming climate neutral by 2040. This involves numerous measures: the expansion of photovoltaic systems, the creation of 400,000 square meters of new parks and green spaces and the expansion of urban cycle paths go hand in hand with the desired Viennese integration code.

Focus on education and integration

There is also a great focus on education, with the improvement of childcare offerings in kindergartens and targeted language support for children who need language support. The measures are intended to make lateral entry for specialists in elementary education easier. The modernization of the hospital infrastructure and the expansion of regional health centers are also on the new government's agenda.

The NEOS and the SPÖ are in a strong position and are optimistic that the next five years will bring positive development for the city, both economically and socially. “We have the feeling that we will have a good hand,” said Selma Arapović when presenting the new challenges and topics.

For a deep insight into the developments of the new Vienna municipal council and coalition politics, you should visit the reports from ots.at, the press and presse.wien.gv.at. They provide a comprehensive overview of the new faces and planned measures in the Vienna City Council. The next few months will show whether the high expectations can actually be fulfilled.