Final Austrian result confirms centre-left victory

VIENNA, Oct 10: Austria's centre-left Social Democrats kept their placae as the biggest party with 35.3 per cent ahead of the conservatives with 34.3 per cent after votes cast by absentees in the October 1 election had been counted today, state TV ORF said.

The environmentalist Green party was about 500 votes ahead of the far-right Freedom Party in the final result, securing it one of the three parliament speakers' posts but leaving it with too few votes to form a majority with the Social Democrats.

REUTERS