Right wing losses in Vienna

The far right-wing Freedom Party in Austria looks to have lost ground in municipal elections in the capital, Vienna.

First predictions said the Social Democratic Party, which has run the city for much of the past century, emerged clear winners with forty-two per cent of the vote.

The Freedom Party came in second with around twenty-one per cent; seven points down on the last election.

The Freedom Party, which caused an international outcry when it entered the national government, had covered the city with posters of its candidate for mayor with the comment : "Foreigners.

I understand the worries of the Viennese." Legal immigrants represent eighteen percent of the population.

Support for the Freedom Party had slumped in two regional elections last year.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service