Europe

The Latest: Austria voter comments reflect tight race

Associated Press
Published | Updated

Alexander Van der Bellen, candidate of the Austrian Greens, briefs the media besides his wife Doris Schmidauer after leaving a polling station and casting their votes in Vienna, Austria, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016. Austria holds presidential elections in a contest pitting a left-leaning contender against a right-winger supported by a populist anti-immigration party. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader) (The Associated Press)

Norbert Hofer of Austria's Freedom Party, FPOE, speakes to press after casting his vote during the Austrian presidential elections, in Pinkafeld, Austria, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) (The Associated Press)

Norbert Hofer of Austria's Freedom Party, FPOE, takes pictures with a girl after casting his vote during the Austrian presidential elections, in Pinkafeld, Austria, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Ronald Zak) (The Associated Press)

The Latest on Austria's presidential election (all times local):

10:50 a.m.

As Austrians start casting ballots for president, their comments reflect a tight race between left-leaning Alexander Van der Bellen and right-wing populist Norbert Hofer.

Guenther Poiker is unequivocal, saying outside of a Vienna polling station "I'm a Van der Bellen voter." But Alexander Mautner figures that "Hofer is going to win, by a very small margin."

The election is a rerun from May, which Van der Bellen won by less than 1 percentage point. It is being re-held following a court ruling after Hofer's Freedom Party claimed widespread irregularities.

Austria's presidency is a mostly ceremonial post. But the election is being watched as a barometer of how populists in other European Union countries may fare in coming months.

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7:30 a.m.

In an election sure to reverberate across Europe, Austrian voters are choosing between a right-wing populist and a left-leaning former politician for their next president.

Austria's presidency is a mostly ceremonial post. But the Sunday election is being watched as a barometer of how populists in other European Union countries may fare in coming months.

The Austrian vote pits Alexander Van der Bellen against Norbert Hofer. A former leading member of the Greens Party, Van der Bellen is the hope of Austrians who want to stop Hofer, a popular leader of the anti-migrant and anti-EU Freedom Party.

Most polling stations opened at 7 a.m. and will close at 5 p.m. local time. Results are expected late Sunday, but the winner may not be known until absentee ballots are counted on Monday.