Government and power in Austria
Who leads Austria, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Federal parliamentary republic.
Who leads Austria?
- Head of state: Alexander Van der Bellen (Federal President of the Republic of Austria)
- Head of government: Christian Stocker (Federal Chancellor of the Republic of Austria)
- Foreign minister: Beate Meinl-Reisinger (Federal Minister for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria)
Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.
Governance scores
The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.
- Voice and accountability
- Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.
- Political stability and absence of violence
- Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.
- Government effectiveness
- Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.
- Regulatory quality
- Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.
- Rule of law
- Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.
- Control of corruption
- Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.
How does Austria score on voice and accountability?
Voice and accountability: 83.8 out of 100 in 2025, 13th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 74.2). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 85.4.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Austria score on political stability?
Political stability and absence of violence: 74.9 out of 100 in 2025, 69th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 73.5). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 85.6.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Austria score on government effectiveness?
Government effectiveness: 83.9 out of 100 in 2025, 17th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 69.4). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 85.1.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Austria score on regulatory quality?
Regulatory quality: 73.9 out of 100 in 2025, 24th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 66.2). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 78.1.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Austria score on the rule of law?
Rule of law: 85.8 out of 100 in 2025, 10th highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 70.8). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 87.7.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow does Austria score on control of corruption?
Control of corruption: 74.3 out of 100 in 2025, 22nd highest of 193 UN member states with a score (regional median 60.7). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was 78.1.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many women are in Austria's parliament?
Women held 35.5% of seats in the national parliament (single or lower chamber) in 2025, 45th highest of 184 countries with data. Source: Inter-Parliamentary Union, via the World Bank.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many of Austria's ministers are women?
Women held 38.5% of ministerial posts in 2025, 26th highest of 190.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much does the government of Austria spend?
Central government spending (expense) was 46.0% of GDP in 2023.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much tax does the government of Austria collect?
Central government tax revenue was 25.8% of GDP in 2024, 10th highest of 92.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow much does Austria spend on the military?
Military spending was 1.1% of GDP in 2025, 102nd highest of 149 (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, via the World Bank).
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow big are the armed forces of Austria?
Armed forces personnel numbered 23,000 in 2020.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow good are Austria's official statistics?
The World Bank's Statistical Performance Indicator, which scores how well a country's official statistics system works, was 89.3 out of 100 in 2024, 22nd highest of 187.
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many births are registered in Austria?
100.0% of births of children under 5 were registered with a civil authority (2022).
Source: World Bank · saved copyHow many people in Austria use the internet?
91.9% of people used the internet in 2025.
Source: World Bank · saved copyOfficial bodies that hold power in Austria
Government
- Federal ChancelleryFederal government announcements, Council of Ministers decisions and policy information from the Chancellor's office.
Parliament
- Parliament of Austria (National Council and Federal Council)Bills, plenary records, committee materials and member information for both chambers, the Nationalrat and the Bundesrat.
Elections
- Federal Ministry of the Interior, Elections DepartmentOfficial results of national elections, referendums and popular initiatives, and electoral rules.
Courts
- Supreme Court of JusticeDecisions and press releases of Austria's highest court in civil and criminal matters.
- Constitutional CourtRulings on the constitutionality of laws, election challenges and fundamental-rights complaints.
Public audit
- Austrian Court of AuditAudit reports on federal, state and municipal bodies and on public companies.
Ombudsman
- Austrian Ombudsman BoardAnnual reports to parliament and findings on complaints about public administration.
Lobbying register
- Lobbying and Interest Representation RegisterPublic register of lobbying firms, in-house lobbyists, self-governing bodies and interest groups, kept by the Ministry of Justice.
Public contracts
- Federal Procurement AgencyCentral purchasing for federal bodies, including framework contracts, tenders and procurement information.
Laws and the official gazette
- Legal Information System of the Republic of AustriaConsolidated federal and state law, the Federal Law Gazette and decisions of the Austrian courts.
Government below the national level
- Länder (9, including Vienna): Elected Landtag and government; governor (Landeshauptmann) elected by the Landtag
- Districts (Bezirke) with district authorities (Bezirkshauptmannschaften): District head (Bezirkshauptmann) appointed by the Land government
- Statutory cities (Statutarstädte, 15): Elected council and mayor
- Municipalities (Gemeinden, about 2,090): Municipal council elected; mayor elected directly in six Länder and by the council in Lower Austria, Styria and Vienna
How local power works in Austria
Places in Austria
Sources
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
- World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Central government spending (GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 808094019f50…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Tax revenue (GC.TAX.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08c94b750f31…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Military spending (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a7f6913a783b…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Armed forces personnel (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fa4663c743ba…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: Births registered (SP.REG.BRTH.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f8d443034ba7…)
- World Bank: World Development Indicators: People using the internet (IT.NET.USER.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0d78dc658329…)
Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.