Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann resigned Monday, saying he lacked support in the Social Democratic party at a time when the country grapples with migration and economic problems, according to dpa. The surprise move underlines the crisis the centre-left party finds itself in amid growing popular support for the far-right Freedom Party. After a meeting with party leaders, Faymann said he would step down as head of government and as party leader. "This country needs a chancellor that has the full support of his party. This government needs a powerful new start," the 56-year-old politician said. The conservative Vice Chancellor and Economics Minister Reinhold Mitterlehner took over as interim chancellor, but it was unclear who might succeed Faymann permanently as head of the coalition government with Mittlerlehner's centre-right People's Party.
