Susanne Riess-Passer
| Susanne Riess | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Vice Chancellor of Austria | |
| In office 4 February 2000 – 4 February 2003 |
|
| Chancellor | Wolfgang Schüssel |
| Preceded by | Wolfgang Schüssel |
| Succeeded by | Herbert Haupt |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 3 January 1961 Braunau am Inn, Austria |
| Political party | Freedom Party of Austria |
Susanne Riess (born 3 January 1961)[1] is a former Austrian politician of the Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ).
Career
In the first government headed by Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel, which was inaugurated in 2000, she became Vice Chancellor[2] and minister of public services and sports, representing her party in the coalition with Schüssel's Austrian People's Party (ÖVP). The Freedom Party had finished first in the 1999 election, so its leader, Jörg Haider, should have become Chancellor. However, Haider yielded to Schüssel in order to appease international opinion. Although this put him in line to become Vice-Chancellor, Haider realised he was too controversial to have any direct role in the government. He thus stood aside in favour of Riess-Passer, who had been FPÖ managing chairwoman since 1996.
In the course of the formation of the government in 2000, she became chairwoman and leader of the FPÖ. She was known for being loyal to Haider,[3][4] which earned her the nickname Königskobra (King Cobra).[5]
After severe disagreements with her former political mentor Haider in Summer 2002[6] (the so-called Knittelfeld Putsch), she resigned from all of her posts, as did finance minister Karl-Heinz Grasser and the party spokesman in parliament, Peter Westenthaler.[7] After the 2002 elections, she remained Vice Chancellor on a provisional basis until the coalition between ÖVP and FPÖ was renewed in early 2003, and has since had no involvement in politics.
Since 2004, Riess-Passer has been the CEO of the Wüstenrot-Gruppe.[8]
References
- ↑ Biography on the Austrian parliament's site. Retrieved on 12 Aug 2011.(German)
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| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Vice Chancellor of Austria 2000-2003 |
Succeeded by Herbert Haupt |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | FPÖ Party Chairman 2000-2002 |
Succeeded by Mathias Reichhold |
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