Austrian far-right populist concedes Norbert Hofer defeat in presidential vote to Alexander Van der Bellen

Austria's far-right Freedom Party (FPOE) presidential candidate Norbert Hofer attends a TV debate in Hofburg Palace in Vienna, Austria, during the election evening on December 4, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

Austria’s far-right presidential candidate, Norbert Hofer, has conceded defeat to mainstream politician, Alexander Van der Bellen, in the country’s presidential election, preliminary results show.

“I am infinitely sad that it didn't work out,” Hofer, of the right-wing populist Freedom Party (FPOe), said in a post on his Facebook account on Sunday, after the initial results revealed that the anti-immigration candidate was bitterly lagging behind his rival with only 46.4 percent of the votes.

“I congratulate Alexander Van der Bellen on his success and call on all Austrians to stick together and work together,” Hofer added.

The 72-year-old Van der Bellen, who preached moderation and tolerance, managed to garner 53.5 percent of the votes, landing a blow to 45-year-old Hofer, who hoped to become Europe’s first freely elected far-right president since World War II.

Herbert Kickl, the FPOe’s chief strategist, also confirmed Hofer’s defeat and congratulated Van der Bellen, an independent contender backed by the Greens.

Shortly after the preliminary results emerged, the victorious Van der Bellen appeared on public television, saying that “from the start I have always fought and argued in favor of an Austrian that is pro-European.” He added that “old values like freedom, equality and solidarity” also contributed.

Alexander Van der Bellen, the winner of Austria’s presidential election, attends a post-election TV talk round in Vienna, December 4, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

Hofer has floated the idea of holding a referendum on Austria’s exit from the European Union, modeled after a similar vote in Britain. Pro-EU Van der Bellen had warned against such a prospect.

The FPOe candidate was also highly critical of his country’s policies in accepting large numbers of refugees, while Van der Bellen, who has been revealed to be a child of refugees himself, had accused his opponent of holding authoritarian views.

Now, with Hofer’s defeat, EU leaders can breathe a sigh of relief in the wake of the anti-establishment tide sweeping many countries following Britain's referendum, commonly known as Brexit.

The official results are expected to come out on Monday, after absentee votes have been tallied. Some 6.4 million Austrians were eligible to vote in Sunday's election.

Austria voted for a new president in April, when Hofer defeated Van der Bellen, but garnered inadequate votes to win the largely ceremonial post outright. The runoff was held in May, when Van der Bellen narrowly defeated his rival by just 31,000 votes, less than one percent.

However, Austria's highest court annulled the result in July after the FPOe contested the election outcome, claiming widespread irregularities in the polling procedure. Sunday’s election was a rerun from May.

The central European country has been without a president since July 8, when Heinz Fischer stepped down. The president traditionally plays a largely ceremonial role in Austria but enjoys the power to fire the cabinet.