Heinz Fischer

{{Infobox officeholder

| name = Heinz Fischer

| image = Heinz Fischer - Buchmesse Wien 2018.JPG

| caption = Fischer in 2018

| office = President of Austria

| chancellor = {{ubl | Wolfgang Schüssel | Alfred Gusenbauer | Werner Faymann | Christian Kern }}

| 1blankname =

| term_start = 8 July 2004

| term_end = 8 July 2016

| predecessor = Thomas Klestil

| successor = Alexander Van der Bellen

| office1 = Second President of the National Council

| term_start1 = 20 December 2002

| term_end1 = 16 June 2004

| predecessor1 = Thomas Prinzhorn

| successor1 = Barbara Prammer

| office2 = President of the National Council

| term_start2 = 5 November 1990

| term_end2 = 20 December 2002

| predecessor2 = Rudolf Pöder

| successor2 = Andreas Khol

| office3 = Minister for Science and Research

| term_start3 = 24 May 1983

| term_end3 = 21 January 1987

| chancellor3 = {{ubl | Fred Sinowatz | Franz Vranitzky }}

| predecessor3 = Hertha Firnberg

| successor3 = Hans Tuppy

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1938|10|9|df=y}}

| birth_place = Graz, Reichsgau Steiermark, State of Austria, German Reich
(now Graz, Styria, Austria)

| death_date =

| death_place =

| party = Independent (2004–present)

| otherparty = Social Democratic Party
(until 2004)

| spouse = {{marriage|Margit Binder|1968}}

| children = 2

| alma_mater = University of Vienna (PhD)

| awards = Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
Order of Prince Henry
Royal Order of the Seraphim
Military Order of Saint James of the Sword

| honorific_suffix = GColIH, OMRI, RSerafO, GCollSE

| allegiance = {{flag|Austria}}

| branch = {{flagicon image|Roundel_of_Austria.svg|50px|Emblem of Austrian Armed Forces}} Austrian Armed Forces

| serviceyears = 1958

| unit = Heerestelegrafenbataillon Army Signal Corps

}}

Heinz Fischer GColIH, OMRI, RSerafO, GCollSE ({{IPA|de|haɪnts ˈfɪʃɐ|-|De-at Heinz Fischer.ogg}}; born 9 October 1938) is an Austrian politician who served as the president of Austria from 2004 to 2016. Fischer previously served as minister for science from 1983 to 1987 and as president of the National Council of Austria from 1990 to 2002.{{cite web |title=Präsidentinnen und Präsidenten seit 1920 {{!}} Parlament Österreich |url=https://www.parlament.gv.at/WWER/NR/PRAES/ |website=www.parlament.gv.at}} A member of the Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ) until 2004, he suspended his party membership as he became president.{{cite web|url=http://www.wienerzeitung.at/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=4975&Alias=WZO&cob=483224|title=Wiener Zeitung Online – Tageszeitung für Österreich|first=Wiener Zeitung|last=Online|website=Wiener Zeitung Online – Tageszeitung für Österreich}}{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}{{cite news|url=http://www.br-online.de/bayerisches-fernsehen/rundschau/oesterreich-praesidentenwahl-wahl-ID1272184893984.xml?_requestid=14 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120729092050/http://www.br-online.de/bayerisches-fernsehen/rundschau/oesterreich-praesidentenwahl-wahl-ID1272184893984.xml?_requestid=14 |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 July 2012 |title=Neuer alter Präsident |publisher=Bayerischer Rundfunk |date=25 April 2010 |access-date=13 November 2010 }}{{cite web |author1=Christian Böhmer |author2=Michael Hammerl |title=Warum Heinz Fischer Rendi-Wagner unterstützt - aber nicht für sie abstimmt (Why Heinz Fischer supports Rendi-Wagner - but doesn't vote for her) |url=https://kurier.at/politik/inland/warum-heinz-fischer-nicht-fuer-rendi-wagner-abstimmen-kann/402423830 |website=kurier.at |publisher=k-digital Medien GmbH & Co KG |access-date=4 June 2023 |location=Wien |language=German |date=25 April 2023}}

Early life

Fischer was born in Graz, Styria, which had recently become part of Nazi Germany, following Germany's annexation of Austria in March 1938. Fischer attended a grammar school which focused on humanities and graduated in 1956. He studied law at the University of Vienna, earning a doctorate in 1961. Apart from being a politician, Fischer also pursued an academic career, and became a professor of Political Science at the University of Innsbruck in 1994.{{cite web|title=External lecturers|url=https://www.uibk.ac.at/politikwissenschaft/team/externe-lehrende/|publisher=Department of Political Science, University of Innsbruck|access-date=28 February 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016070405/https://www.uibk.ac.at/politikwissenschaft/team/externe-lehrende/|archive-date=16 October 2017}}

Political career

File:Austrian federal president's re-election party, Vienna 20100425.jpg

Fischer was a member of the Austrian parliament, the National Council, from 1971, and served as its president from 1990 to 2002. From 1983 to 1987 he was minister for science in a coalition government headed by Fred Sinowatz.

=First term as president=

In January 2004 Fischer announced that he would run for president to succeed Thomas Klestil. He was elected on 25 April 2004 as the candidate of the opposition Social Democratic Party. He polled 52.4 per cent of the votes to defeat Benita Ferrero-Waldner, then foreign minister in the ruling conservative coalition led by the People's Party.

Fischer was sworn in on 8 July 2004 and took over office from the college of presidents of the National Council, who had acted for the president following Klestil's death on 6 July.

===Second term as president===

File:Yukio Hatoyama and Heinz Fischer at the Japanese Kantei in 2009 (1).jpg in Tokyo on 30 September 2009]]

File:Kirchner&Fischer.png in the Pink House.]]

File:Fischer Ostermayer Klug f3 Michelides.jpg and Klug at the opening of the Memorial for the Victims of Nazi Military Justice on the Ballhausplatz]]

File:Ali Khamenei receives Heinz Fischer in his house (3).jpg in Tehran on 8 September 2015]]

In April 2010, Fischer was re-elected president of Austria, winning a second six-year term in office with almost 79% of the votes. The voter turnout of merely 53.6% was a record low.{{cite web|url=http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2010/04/2010425175334560120.html|title=Austria president sweeps to victory|date=25 April 2010|access-date=25 April 2010|publisher=Al Jazeera}} Around a third of those eligible to vote voted for Fischer, leading the conservative daily Die Presse to describe the election as an "absolute majority for non-voters".{{cite web |url=http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=357759&version=1&template_id=39&parent_id=21 |title= Gulf Times- Qatar's top-selling English daily newspaper - Homepage|website=www.gulf-times.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100602075455/http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=357759&version=1&template_id=39&parent_id=21 |archive-date=2 June 2010}} The reasons behind the low turnout may have been that pollsters had predicted a safe victory for Fischer (past Austrian presidents running for a second term had always won) and that the other large party, ÖVP, had not nominated a candidate of their own, and had not endorsed any of the three candidates. Prominent ÖVP members, unofficially but in public, even suggested to cast a blank vote, which 7% of the voters did.

= Post-presidency =

In 2017, he and former UN secretary-general Ban-Ki Moon co-founded the Ban Ki-Moon Centre for Global Citizens, an international non-governmental organization to advance the Sustainable Development Goals, headquartered in Vienna.{{Cite web |last=Bundespräsident |date=2022-09-08 |title="Internationale Zusammenarbeit ist angesichts der aktuellen Herausforderungen wichtiger denn je!" |url=https://www.bundespraesident.at/aktuelles/detail/internationale-zusammenarbeit-ist-angesichts-der-aktuellen-herausforderungen-wichtiger-denn-je |access-date=2023-05-01 |website=www.bundespraesident.at |language=de-DE}}

Personal life

File:The President of Austria, Heinz Fischer is welcomed to ESO’s premises in Santiago.jpg's premises in Santiago.{{cite news|title=President of Austria Visits ESO in Santiago|url=http://www.eso.org/public/announcements/ann12097/|access-date=8 December 2012|newspaper=ESO Announcements}} ]] File:Coat of Arms of Heinz Fischer (Order of the Seraphim).svg]]

Fischer identifies himself as agnostic{{cite web|url=http://www.bundespraesident.at/newsdetail/artikel/es-kann-auch-das-standesamt-sein-profil/|title=Bundespräsident.at: "Es kann auch das Standesamt sein" profil|website=www.bundespraesident.at|access-date=12 April 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180710071319/http://www.bundespraesident.at/newsdetail/artikel/es-kann-auch-das-standesamt-sein-profil/|archive-date=10 July 2018|url-status=dead}} and as a social democrat. He and Margit Binder married in 1968. The couple have two grown children.

Despite being members of opposing parties, Fischer was close friends with former ÖVP politician Sixtus Lanner.{{Cite web |date=14 July 2022 |title=Former ÖVP General Secretary Sixtus Lanner died at the age of 88 |url=https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000137435846/frueherer-oevp-generalsekretaer-sixtus-lanner-88-jaehrig-verstorben |access-date=19 July 2022 |website=Der Standard |language=de-AT}}

He enjoys mountaineering and has been president of the Austrian Friends of Nature for many years.

Honours and awards

= National honours =

== Federal order ==

2004: 60px Grand Star of Honour of the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria (Austria)

== State honours ==

2008: Ring of Honour of the Province of Styria
2008: Freedom of the City of Graz

== Awards ==

2009: Florianiplakette of the Austrian Federal Fire Association in gold

= Foreign honours =

== Foreign orders ==

1993: 60px Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Italy)
2005: 60x60px Grand Collar of the Order of Prince Henry (Portugal)[http://www.ordens.presidencia.pt/?idc=154&list=1 Portuguese President's website] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117004213/http://www.ordens.presidencia.pt/?idc=154&list=1 |date=17 January 2013 }}
2005: 60px Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic (Spain)
2006: 60px Grand Cross of the Order of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (Finland)
2006: 60px Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary (Hungary)
2006: 60px Collar of the Order pro merito Melitensi (Sovereign Military Order of Malta)
2007: 60px Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Italy)
2007: 60px Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav (Norway)
2007: 60px Knight of the Royal Order of the Seraphim (Sweden)
2009: 60px Grand Cross with Golden Chain of the Order of Vytautas the Great (Lithuania)[http://www.lrp.lt/lt/prezidento_veikla/apdovanojimai/apdovanojimai_256/p40.html Lithuanian Presidency] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140419212238/http://www.lrp.lt/lt/prezidento_veikla/apdovanojimai/apdovanojimai_256/p40.html |date=19 April 2014 }}, Lithuanian Orders searching form
2009: 60x60px Grand Collar of the Order of Saint James of the Sword (Portugal)
2009: 60x60px Grand Collar of the Order of the White Lion (Czech Republic)
2012: 60px Collar of the Order of Merit (Chile)
2013: 60px Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour (France)
2013: 60px Knight of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau (Luxembourg){{cite web | url = http://royautes.ek.la/henri-et-maria-teresa-en-autriche-a83173534 | title = L'actualité des royautés, "Henri et Maria Teresa en Autriche" | language = fr | access-date = 2 July 2013 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131017094714/http://royautes.ek.la/henri-et-maria-teresa-en-autriche-a83173534 | archive-date = 17 October 2013 | url-status = dead | df = dmy-all }}
2014: 60px National Flag Order (Albania){{cite web|url=http://president.al/?p=17934|title=Website Zyrtar|first=Presidenti i|last=Republikes|website=president.al|access-date=3 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807202427/http://president.al/?p=17934|archive-date=7 August 2016|url-status=dead}}
2015: 60px Grand Collar of the Order of the Condor of the Andes (Bolivia)
2016: 60px Order of the Balkan Mountains (Bulgaria)

== Foreign awards ==

2008: Honorary Doctorate of Law Faculty of the University of Tel Aviv
2009: Honorary Doctorate from the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences