The actor and author is allowed to cast his vote in the National Council elections. He connects his joy about this with a small declaration of love.
There are few actors who appear in public with as much humanity as well as wisdom: Stephen Fry has already prompted colleagues like Nicole Kidman to ask what his IQ might be. He is not only one of the most well-known artists in his country, but also one of the most beloved. But then again, Fry is not “just” an actor, but also the author of many books (including “The Stars’ Tennis Balls” or “Mythos. What the Gods Tell Us Today”), a comedian, and much more.
Stephen Fry is, as is less known, also eligible to vote in Austria. For the first time. Because in the National Council elections, a larger group of descendants of Nazi-exiled individuals can now vote, having obtained citizenship under a legal amendment in 2020. His grandmother fled from Austria before the Nazis. Fry, known for his role as Oscar Wilde in the film of the same name, as Edek in “Treasure,” or as Mycroft in “Sherlock Holmes,” is now also featured in a video from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
In it, he explains, first in German and then in English, that he grew up with a love for Austrian culture. He loves Austrian music, art, literature – as well as the people and the landscape here. And that he can now vote: “It’s my first time, and I’m very excited,” he said there. And also: “I am proud to say that I am an Austrian citizen.”
Fry described his voting rights in Austria as a privilege and urged all Austrians in the video to make use of it. “It’s such an important right. It’s wonderful that Austria is a modern and forward-looking country that cares about its history and future. But none of this makes sense if not everyone votes and forms an opinion about what kind of Austria they want to live in,” said the London-born Fry.
Since April, around 27,800 people have taken the opportunity to regain citizenship under Paragraph 58c of the Citizenship Act. Almost all of these people live abroad, most in Israel, the USA, and the United Kingdom. According to Viennese political scientist Laurenz Ennser-Jedenastik, the number of eligible voters residing abroad has “only increased by a few hundred persons” since the last National Council elections in 2019, which seems to indicate a low interest among the new expatriate Austrians in voting rights. They are not automatically eligible to vote but must register in the voter registry. The corresponding application deadline for the upcoming National Council elections expired on August 8.
Currently, around 200,000 expatriate Austrians are registered with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As the ministry emphasized, strengthening awareness of participation “is an important aspect of the ministry’s and the embassies’ activities.” Thus, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) informed all eligible voters, who had given explicit consent to be contacted, in a personal letter about the elections, deadlines, and options for applying for ballots in advance of the EU and National Council elections. Additionally, corresponding social media campaigns were developed.
“Particular attention” will also be given to those who regained their citizenship under Paragraph 58c of the Citizenship Act. These individuals were informed about participation in the elections through a brochure when receiving their citizenship certificate. A focus will also be placed on this group of people in the social media campaigns, as shown by the video with Stephen Fry. (rovi/APA)