Berlin, June 3
Austria swore in its first woman Chancellor on Monday at the head of an interim government that will serve until after an election expected in September. The 69-year-old Brigitte Bierlein, previously the head of Austria’s top court, will lead a Cabinet of non-partisan experts.
“I am particularly glad ... that for the first time in history we will have a female chancellor at the head of the government, and secondly that women and men are equally represented in this government,” President Alexander Van der Bellen said as he swore in the new team.
Bierlein was named as interim leader after Sebastian Kurz lost a confidence vote a week ago, following the collapse of a governing coalition of his right-wing People’s Party and the far-right Freedom Party.
Bierlein pledged stability and assured Austrians that they were in good hands. She said a government needed to have transparent rules, be open to dialogue and constructive disagreement, and to entertain a diversity of opinion.
“That was my core belief as a judge, and it remains my belief as Chancellor,” she said. — AP
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