Austria: Green Party's Van der Bellen casts ballot in presidential runoff

Independent Green Party candidate Alexander Van der Bellen cast his ballot at a polling station at Amerling Highschool in Vienna, Sunday, as voting kicked off for the country's 2016 Presidential runoffs. If Bellen fails to win the election, Austria could become the first European Union member to select an anti-EU far-right head of state.
For the first time since World War II, voters will not be choosing candidates from Austria's traditional centre-left and centre-right parties, but between Bellen and Norbert Hofer of the far-right populist Freedom Party (FPO).
Despite Hofer's success in the first round of elections on April 24, beating his competitors with 35 percent of the vote, the FPO candidate was unable to garner a majority, leading to the runoffs.
Support for the FPO has risen in a climate of frustration with Austria's established parties, growing concern over the refugee crisis, and the consequent EU-Turkey refugee deal. Hofer and the FPO have been decisively opposed to immigration, rooting their campaign in an anti-Islamic stance after Austria received some 90,000 asylum seekers last year, predominantly from Muslim-majority countries.
Despite the Austrian presidency being a traditionally a symbolic post, Hofer, who has been pitted to win the race, has warned that he could use his position to dismiss governments that do not act on his party's immigration policy.
Polls opened Sunday at 07:00 (05:00 GMT) and close at 17:00 (15:00 GMT), with projected results expected shortly after. However, postal ballots, which reportedly make up 14 percent of Austria's 6.4 million eligible voters this year, will be tallied Monday.