Elections to the Vienna City Council and to the District Councils 2025

What you need to know

The elections to the Vienna City Council and to the District Councils take place on Sunday, 27 April 2025. The 100 members of the Vienna City Council are elected in the City Council elections. Depending on a district’s total population, the district councils have between 40 and 60 members each. These are elected in the district council elections.

Who is entitled to vote in Vienna?

Austrian citizens who had their primary residence in Vienna on the qualifying date (28 January 2025) and who were born on or before 27 April 2009, (i.e. who have reached the age of 16 on or before Election Day), are entitled to vote in the elections to the Vienna City Council and in the elections to the district councils.

In addition, non-Austrian EU-citizens who had their primary residence in Vienna on the qualifying date (28 January 2025) and who were born on or before 27 April 2009 (i.e. who have reached the age of 16 on or before Election Day) are entitled to vote in the elections to the district councils. Pursuant to the Austrian Constitution, non-Austrian EU-citizens are not entitled to vote in the elections to the Vienna City Council as it is at the same time the Vienna Provincial Parliament.

Viewing and updating the electoral register

Household notification letters, showing the number of persons entitled to vote per household, are distributed from early February 2025.

You can view and update the electoral register ("Wählerverzeichnis") from 18 to 27 February 2025.

During this time, you can view the electoral register in person at the local electoral offices ("Wahlreferat") of the Municipal District Offices ("Magistratische Bezirksämter") (German). Every person, who has their primary residence in Austria, can apply to have their details updated, entered in or removed from the electoral register.

Where can I cast my vote?

The official election information ("Amtliche Wahlinformation") is sent to every voter about two weeks before Election Day. It is a short letter specifying the exact address of your polling station and other important information.

Find out more about your allocated polling station in good time. You will find the address in the official election information and from early March on the internet at www.wien.gv.at/wahlen (German).

Good to know: If you bring the official election information to the polling station on Election Day, it will be easier for the staff in the polling station to find your name and address in the electoral register and you will be able to cast your vote promptly.

What happens if I am on holiday?

If you are not sure whether you can come to your allocated polling station on Election Day, you can apply for a voting card (“Wahlkarte”). With this voting card, you can cast your vote at any polling station in Vienna or by postal vote in Austria or from abroad.

If you are in hospital or in a nursing home

Patients of a hospital or nursing home, who cannot come to their allocated polling station in person, for example, because their mobility is reduced, can apply for a voting card. With the voting card, they can cast their vote by postal vote or they can apply for a mobile election commission ("mobile Wahlkommission") to visit them on Election Day. The staff of the hospital or nursing home can assist patients in applying for voting cards.

There will be separate electoral wards for the nursing homes "Pflege Baumgarten", "Pflege Donaustadt", and "Haus der Barmherzigkeit". You need a voting card if you do not have your primary residence at one of these nursing homes but want to cast your vote in one of these electoral wards.

If your mobility is reduced or you are housebound

If you cannot come to your allocated polling station in person because your mobility is reduced or you are housebound (e.g. because of illness or old age), you can apply for a voting card at the competent electoral office ("Wahlreferat") of your Municipal District Office ("Magistratisches Bezirksamt") (German). With the voting card, you can cast your vote by postal vote or you can apply for a mobile election commission ("mobile Wahlkommission") to visit you on Election Day.

Postal vote

If you cannot come to your allocated polling station on Election Day (because you are not in Vienna, for health reasons or because you are abroad), you can apply for a voting card and cast your vote by postal vote.

If you have a voting card, you can cast your vote at any time after receiving your voting card, but you must do so before the last polling station closes on 27 April 2025, 5 pm. The voting card must be returned in person, by post, or by messenger to the competent district electoral commission ("Bezirkswahlbehörde"). On Election Day, you can also return your voting card to any of the polling stations in Vienna during the opening hours, or by 5pm, to the district electoral commission.

If you apply for a voting card in person from 31 March 2025 at the local electoral office ("Wahlreferat") of your competent Municipal District Office ("Magistratisches Bezirksamt"), you can cast your vote there promptly by postal vote, if you like. There are screened areas at the Municipal District Office where you can cast your vote.

How can I apply for a voting card?

You can submit your voting card application as of now until Wednesday, 23 April 2025, in writing (see link "Application for voting card" below for easy online application, or by email, fax, or informal letter) or until Friday, 25 April 2025, noon, in person at the local electoral office ("Wahlreferat") of your competent Municipal District Office ("Magistratisches Bezirksamt") (German). Please note that you cannot apply by phone!

Voting cards will be issued from 31 March 2025 when the nominations and ballot papers are available, as you will receive your voting card together with the ballot paper.

Application for voting card (German)

You need to give the following personal details to apply for a voting card:

• Reason why you need a voting card
• Surname
• First name
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Address of your primary residence
• Official photo identification (i.e. a copy of your official photo identification or the number of your Austrian passport, personal identity card, or driving licence) or signature of your application via your ID Austria account

The voting card will be sent to your home address by post. If you want to receive the voting card at a different address, please provide an alternative postal address in your application.

Pursuant to legal regulations, voting cards are sent by registered mail ("Einschreiben"). The voting card can only be sent by unregistered mail if the application has been validated via your ID Austria account. In this case, you can choose if you want to receive the voting card by registered or unregistered mail. If you choose to receive the voting card by unregistered mail, it will be sent to you at your own risk. Please note that we cannot issue duplicates of voting cards that were lost in the mail.

On election day

Polling stations are open from 7am to 5pm on Election Day, 27 April 2025.

Please remember to bring a valid photo identification (passport, personal identity card, driving licence, student identity card, etc.) when coming to the polling station on Election Day. . Please note that electronic IDs (e.g. digital driving licence) cannot be checked at the polling station and can therefore not be accepted as a valid photo identification.

If you have applied for a voting card but decide to cast your vote in a polling station – even your allocated polling station - you need to bring the voting card to the polling station. Otherwise you will not be able to cast your vote at the polling station.

Please note that the official election information ("Amtliche Wahlinformation") is not an identity document! However, if you bring the official election information to the polling station on Election Day, it will be easier for the staff in the polling station to find your name and address in the electoral register and you will be able to cast your vote promptly.

Further information

• Stadtservice Wien - phone: +43 1 4000 4001
• Comprehensive information about the Vienna City Council elections (German)