Austria's governing coalition crumbles; new elections likely in September

Austria's governing coalition crumbled Monday after months of acrimony, and new elections are expected as early as September. The political sparring began with Vice Chancellor Wilhelm Molterer, leader of the conservative People's Party, calling Monday morning for new elections. Within hours, the Social Democrats appeared to have accepted the challenge by presenting their top candidate for the campaign, Transportation Minister Werner Faymann. Early national elections appear likely to be held in mid-to-late September. Parliament was expected to take the necessary steps to authorize the election within days. The two parties have been bickering since forging their "grand coalition" in early 2007 following the October 2006 elections that gave the Social Democrats a slight lead. "The truth is that they (the People's Party) never... [read full story]