Karoline Edtstadler is 43 years old and at the top of the ÖVP state list. She is a native of Salzburg, grew up in Elixhausen (Flachgau), attended the Musische Gymnasium, and plays the oboe and cymbals. She completed her law studies quickly, followed by positions as a judge, at the public prosecutor’s office, and at the European Court of Human Rights – then politics. The power spot has remained the same for all these years: the Gaisberg peak in Salzburg. Here, she would stop for a drink with almost anyone, according to the minister: “There is one person I would not choose. I know him very well from the Ministry of the Interior. We have too many different views.”
Edtstadler consciously avoids mentioning Herbert Kickl’s name. She would not join a government with the FPÖ leader. She has definitely ruled that out for herself.
Grandma feelings and image issues
Privately, Edtstadler became a mother at a very young age and is already a grandmother today: “It is, of course, a very personal thing, but for me, the moment you look at a grandchild gives a feeling of immortality. The feeling that it just goes on.
With her image as the Ice Princess, Karoline Edtstadler sometimes struggles: “It is something that occupies me. That everyone imagines they have to form an opinion. It happens to me quite often in private when I meet people that they then see it quite differently.”
ÖVP Candidates for the National Council Election
The three Salzburg candidates for the ÖVP state list in a portrait
Peter Haubner – a veteran in parliament
In second place on the ÖVP list is entrepreneur Peter Haubner. The 65-year-old is somewhat of a captain in the background and a veteran in parliament. He has been represented there for 23 years and has never found it boring: “The National Council is a new challenge every day. It has been a very eventful year; I have gone through all facets, working with all factions except for the NEOS. They haven’t been around for long.
A ministerial office was never an issue for Haubner. He was asked, but that was not part of his planning or consideration.
Haubner comes from a family of entrepreneurs; he is a networker, a connector; Haubner can get along with everyone: “My father told me, if you come out of a negotiation as a winner, you have lost. It won’t exist next time. It’s about appreciation, equality, and a joint result.”
Successful entrepreneur in third place
In third place on the state list is Tanja Graf. The 49-year-old is an entrepreneur and a highly successful one at that. Her personnel services company employs around 1,400 staff. She became self-employed 16 years ago – with a clear motto: “Do it yourself and do it better than the large corporations. Bring employees and employers together.”
That her business is successful and brings beautiful profits to the managing partner, Graf stands firm: “Every entrepreneur should have sales and profits; you need that to reinvest.” Tanja Graf is a native of Vienna; she moved to Salzburg 23 years ago for love. Her love for Salzburg has remained. The entrepreneur is proud of what she has achieved professionally. Politically, she believes she is capable of more, even a ministerial office.