28 CultureShock! Austria
The SPÖ and ÖVP
The Socialists (SPÖ), founded in 1889 by Viktor Adler, have
always spoken for the working class. Thus, much of their support
has come from the cities. They were in power for most of the
postwar years, either on their own or at the head of a coalition
government. The conservative ÖVP is backed by businessmen,
farmers, and, unofficially, the Roman Catholic Church. It
promotes greater individual freedoms and less bureaucracy. From
1986 until 1999, the ÖVP was the junior member of a SPÖ–ÖVP
coalition government.Proporz
In an effort to avoid the internal conflict that led to civil war in
1934, the new Austrian government unofficially established
the Proporz system, whereby the two main political
parties (the SPÖ and the ÖVP) agreed to divide among
themselves jobs in the government bureaucracy, nationalised
businesses and public services. Cabinet positions all the way
down to civil service posts were divided according to political
party. Austrians began to question this practice and showed
their unhappiness in the 1999 elections with increased
support for the FPÖ. Although the system still exists, it has