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Austrian Parliament

Bicameral federal legislature of Austria


Summary

Bicameral federal legislature of Austria

FieldValue
nameAustrian Parliament
native_nameParlament Österreich
coa_picLogo Austrian Parliament.svg
coa_res200px
house_typeBicameral
housesFederal Council
National Council
leader2_typePresident of the National Council
leader2Walter Rosenkranz
party2(FPÖ)
election224 October 2024
leader1_typePresident of the Federal Council
leader1Markus Stotter
party1(ÖVP)
election11 January 2026
members{{ublist
house1Federal Council
structure1Bundesrat Österreich (current composition).svg
structure1_res250px
:bordersilver}} ÖVP (23)
:bordersilver}} SPÖ (18)
:bordersilver}} NEOS (1)
:bordersilver}} FPÖ (14)
:bordersilver}} Greens (4)
house2National Council
structure2Nationalrat Österreich (current composition).svg
structure2_res250px
:bordersilver}} ÖVP (51)
:bordersilver}} SPÖ (41)
:bordersilver}} NEOS (18)
:bordersilver}} FPÖ (57)
:bordersilver}} Greens (16)
voting_system2Proportional representation
voting_system1Appointment by State Landtage
last_election229 September 2024
session_roomAustria Parlament Front-Ausschnitt.jpg
session_res260px
session_altParliament Building, Vienna
meeting_placeParliament Building
Vienna, Austria
websiteparlament.gv.at

National Council | 244 | 61 (Federal Council) | 183 (National Council) Government (42) : ÖVP (23) : SPÖ (18) : NEOS (1) Opposition (18) : FPÖ (14) : Greens (4) Government (110) : ÖVP (51) : SPÖ (41) : NEOS (18) Opposition (73) : FPÖ (57) : Greens (16) Vienna, Austria

The Austrian Parliament () is the bicameral federal legislature of Austria. It consists of two chambers – the National Council and the Federal Council. In specific cases, both houses convene as the Federal Assembly. The legislature meets in the Austrian Parliament Building in Vienna.

Overview

Federal Assembly

The National Council is composed of 183 members elected through proportional representation in a general election. The legislative period lasts five years, elections are held earlier if the National Council prematurely moves for its own dissolution. The National Council is the dominant (albeit 'lower') house in the Austrian Parliament, and consequently the terms Parliament and National Council are commonly used synonymously.

The Federal Council is elected indirectly, through the provincial assemblies (Landtage) of the nine States of the Federal Republic, and reflects the distribution of seats in the Austrian Landtage. The states are represented in the Federal Council roughly in accordance to the size of their populations. Seats are redistributed among the states following each general census, and the overall size of the chamber varies slightly as a result. The current Federal Council is composed of 61 delegates. With regard to most issues, the Federal Council only possesses a dilatory right of veto which can be overridden by the National Council. However, the Federal Council enjoys absolute veto powers over bills intended to alter the powers of either the states, or of the Federal Council itself.

The Federal Assembly (Bundesversammlung) is a body whose function is mostly ceremonial in nature, and consists of the members of both houses of Parliament. The Federal Assembly convenes only rarely, for instance to witness the inauguration of the Federal President. It might be noted, however, that under exceptional circumstances the Austrian constitution endows the Federal Assembly with significant responsibilities. An example of this would be its pivotal role in the hypothetical impeachment of a Federal President.

Both houses of parliament, as well as the Federal Assembly, convene in the parliament building located on the Vienna Ring Road. From 2017 to 2022 they convened in the Redoute Wing of the Hofburg due to a renovation of the parliament building.

References

References

  1. "National Council, Federal Council and Federal Assembly".
Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

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