Herbert Kickl, political masculinity, and the Third Republic of Austria. An authoritarian re-definition of democracy since the Covid-19 pandemic

The Austrian government's measures to combat the Covid-19 pandemic (2020–2022) were met with criticism from a heterogeneous protest movement. As part of a populist strategy, Herbert Kickl positioned himself as a prominent spokesperson at these demonstrations, framing the Covid-19 policies as an assault on democracy and civil liberties. In parliamentary debates, several FPÖ politicians portrayed the protests as authentic expressions of the popular will, claiming to represent this will in opposition to a unified political elite comprising both government and parliamentary actors. Since the pandemic, Herbert Kickl has assumed leadership of the FPÖ, which has steadily gained electoral support and emerged as the leading party in the 2024 National Council elections. Many observers contend that the protest movement against Covid-19 policies has reshaped the FPÖ’s image as a masculinist party, with Kickl notably succeeding in attracting female voters. This paper argues that the FPÖ’s discursive strategies merge paternalistic political masculinity with masculinist rhetoric that undermines democratic principles of gender equality. It examines the evolving conceptualization of democracy, currently exemplified by Kickl’s call for a “Third Republic”—a term that contrasts with Austria’s Second Republic established in 1945, and one previously invoked by Jörg Haider, whose usage was criticized for echoing the nomenclature of Hitler’s Third Reich. The aim of this paper is to analyze the gendered rhetorical strategies employed by Kickl and other FPÖ representatives to destabilize democratic norms under the guise of defending democracy.