27/05/2019 (Agence Europe) – Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz was dismissed on Monday 27 May by a vote of no confidence in Parliament supported by the Social Democrats and the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ). The vote is a direct consequence of the Ibizagate scandal (see EUROPE 12258/18) which caused the fall of the government coalition between the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP) and the nationalist party FPÖ. However, the ÖVP came well ahead in the European elections on Sunday 26 May, with 35.4% of the votes, while the FPÖ obtained 17.20% of the votes. The former leader of the FPÖ, Heinz-Christian Strache, involved in the scandal, was elected as an MEP, even though he was at the bottom of the list, thanks to the Austrian direct voting system. President Alexander Van der Bellen now has to appoint a new chancellor to form a government that can secure Parliament's support until early elections, which are expected in September. (MF)