A FINE MESS

Austria Calls Snap Elections Amid Corruption Scandal Involving Orgies and Russian Interference

The country’s chancellor dissolved parliament and called for new elections after an incriminating video surfaced of his vice-chancellor talking to a Russian investor.

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz dissolved parliament to pave the way for snap elections after an incriminating video of his vice chancellor making a deal with a Russian investor surfaced. The secret video showed Heinz-Christian Strache, the far-right leader of his coalition government, attempting to trade public contracts for donations from a woman he believed was the niece of a Russian oligarch. Politico reports that Kurz’s decision to end his coalition government came after Strache’s claims on the secret video that Kurz was involved in sex orgies. Kurz said the claims did not influence his decision to pull the plug on his government. “The images show a disturbing picture, a picture that does not represent our country. This is not who we are. This isn't what Austria is like,” President Van der Bellen said Sunday. “Austrians have the right to have a government they can trust, a government that is esteemed and respected in Europe and the entire world.”