Austrians vote with conservatives in lead

Austrians vote Sunday in snap elections, in which the conservatives look set to triumph but will have difficulties finding a partner to govern after a corruption scandal brought down their last coalition with the far-right.

The People's Party (OeVP) led by 33-year-old Sebastian Kurz is predicted to gain around 33 percent, up slightly from the last elections two years ago but not enough to form a majority government.

Kurz has "nothing to win, but a lot to lose", according to an editorial in Die Presse daily on Saturday.

Sebastian Kurz arrives for a closing rally ahead of federal elections in Vienna, Austria, on Saturday. AP

"Even with a nice plus on Sunday, it is more difficult for him than in 2017," it said, adding there was no partner that quite suited him anymore.

With 6.4 million people eligible to vote, polling stations open at 7 am (0500 GMT) and close at 5 pm (1500 GMT) when first projections are expected.

Far-right troubles

The parliamentary elections were brought about by the "Ibiza-gate" corruption scandal that engulfed Kurz's far-right coalition partner in May, after just 18 months in government together.

Experts have predicted "whizz-kid" Kurz could once again partner up with the Freedom Party (FPOe) in a re-run of the coalition that has been touted by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and other nationalists as a model for all of Europe.

But fresh allegations of wrong-doing have shaken the far-right over the past week.

Prosecutors confirmed Thursday they were investigating Heinz-Christian Strache, who resigned as FPOe leader and vice-chancellor in May because of "Ibiza-gate", over fraudulent party expense claims.

The FPOe's current leader, Norbert Hofer, has said he won't tread "gently" if any wrong-doing is confirmed, leading to worries that supporters of Strache, who led the party for 14 years and remains influential, could stay away from the polls in protest.

Kurz himself has also warned that left-leaning parties could gain more than predicted and then band together to form a coalition without him.

"If there is just a little shift... then there will be a majority against us," Kurz told supporters at a final rally in Vienna on Saturday.

Agence France-Presse