Neos Vienna: New faces and fresh ideas for the local council!

Neos Vienna: New faces and fresh ideas for the local council!

Today, the constituent meeting of the local council and state parliament was held in the Vienna town hall, in which the Wiener Neos presented their new team for the upcoming legislative period of five years. Selma Arapović was elected club chairwoman, while Markus Ornig and Stefan Gara act as her deputy. A new club director was also appointed with Philipp Blass. The NEOs were able to achieve a pleasant result of 10 % in the last Vienna election, which leads to an increase in the town hall club. These successes, supplemented by the continuity of Vice Mayor Bettina Emmerling and six other MPs from the last period, show the trust of voters in the NEOS and the continuation of the coalition with the SPÖ.

On the agenda, important points such as the engagement of 100 municipal councils as well as the election of city councilors were on the agenda. Mayor Michael Ludwig from the SPÖ kept a government declaration in which he presented the goals of the new coalition. This comprises a total of 191 pages and bears the name "upswing coalition". In response to the current challenges, it is intended to put economic impulses and strengthen social cohesion in Vienna. The new government program also forces politicians to develop suitable measures for digitization and the expansion of the urban infrastructure.

The new faces and areas of responsibility

The Neos present fresh faces again in this legislative period. Jing Hu, Maria in the Maur-Koenne, Lukas Burian and Arabel Bernecker-Thiel are new to the team. Jing HU, who was the first neos candidate with basic mandate to the local council, brings her expertise as a pharmacist and restaurateur. Maria in the Maur-Koenne, a lawyer with political experience, will work in the fields of work, media and transparency. Lukas Burian, Channel Manager in the digitization program of the ÖGK, is particularly committed to the rainbow community. Arabel Bernecker-Thiel is a political scientist and will concentrate on migration policy.

a strong coalition program

The coalition of SPÖ and Neos, which includes 53 out of 100 mandates in the municipal council, has set ambitious goals. According to Mayor Ludwig, Vienna would like to establish and plan to apply for the execution of the Eurovision Song Contest 2026. Other key points are the climate target, climate neutrality by 2040, as well as the expansion of photovoltaics and geothermal energy. The promotion of the German language in kindergartens and the improvement of the support key in personnel bottlenecks are also part of the program.

Overall, today's session shows that an exciting political period is imminent in Vienna. The NEOS have prepared well for the new challenges and seem ready to work with the SPÖ on the implementation of their plans to make Vienna Future Fit. The city not only delivers tangible, but also visions that are supposed to improve life in the federal capital.