Communist Party of Austria
The Communist Party of Austria (German: Kommunistische Partei Österreichs, CPA or KPÖ) is a communist party in Austria. Established in 1918 as the Communist Party of German-Austria (KPDÖ), it is one of the world's oldest Communist parties. The KPÖ was banned between 1933 and 1945 under both the Austrofascist regime and the Nazi German control of Austria after the 1938 Anschluss. It played an important role in the Austrian resistance against the Nazis.
The party currently holds two seats in the Styrian Landtag (state parliament), but has not had representation in the National Council (Nationalrat, Austria's federal parliament) since 1959. At the legislative election held on September 29, 2013, it won only 1.03% of the votes (48,175 out of a total of 4,782,563), well below the 4% minimum to obtain seats in the National Council.
It is part of the New European Left Forum (NELF) and the Party of the European Left.
History
Background and Establishment
The KPÖ was officially established on the 3 November 1918. Due to the Allies' sea blockade during the First World War, there was a supply shortage in Austria, resulting in workers protests. Such actions included strikes such as the 1918 "Jännerstreik". In 1917, concurrent with the Russian October Revolution, the left wing of the workers' movement established the KPÖ. Ruth Fischer, Franz Koritschoner, and Lucien Laurat were among the co-founders.
