Gabi Burgstaller (born 23 May 1963) is an
Austrian politician, and the former governess (''
Landeshauptfrau
Landeshauptmann (if male) or Landeshauptfrau (if female) (, "state captain", plural ''Landeshauptleute'') is the chairman of a state government and the supreme official of an States of Austria, Austrian state and the Italy, Italian autonomous provi ...
'') of the
State of Salzburg.
Life
She was born in
Penetzdorf/
Niederthalheim
Niederthalheim is a municipality in the Austrian state of Upper Austria
Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Re ...
near
Schwanenstadt in
Upper Austria. After matriculation at a high school in
Gmunden
Gmunden () is a town in Upper Austria, Austria in the district of Gmunden (district), Gmunden. It has 13,204 inhabitants (estimates 2016 ). It is much frequented as a health and summer resort, and has a variety of lake, brine, vegetable and pine-c ...
and one year abroad in
England, she studied law at the
University of Salzburg. From 1987 until 1989, she worked as an assistant at the Institutes for Constitutional and Administrative Law, and Sociology of Law respectively at the same university. From 1989, Mrs. Burgstaller worked as a consumer consultant at the
Salzburg Chamber of Labour. There, specializing in
residential rights and
tenancy law
A leasehold estate is an ownership of a temporary right to hold land or property in which a lessee or a tenant holds rights of real property by some form of title from a lessor or landlord. Although a tenant does hold rights to real property, a l ...
, she earned an excellent reputation acting on behalf of 25,000 investors defrauded by the WEB-IMMAG building trust company.
In 1994, she started her political career as a Member of the State Government, whereas she acted as chairperson of the
Austrian Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) right from the beginning. On 27 April 1999, Burgstaller was elected State Councillor in Salzburg's State Government. In the Government Burgstaller was responsible for
female concerns,
construction,
trade,
consumerism, and transport.
On 31 March 2001, Burgstaller was elected as the first woman to head Salzburg's Social Democratic Party with an approval of 98% of delegates. On 25 April, she was appointed as first deputy governor of the State of Salzburg. Her agendas included the purviews of communities, health and youth issues, and again female concerns and consumerism.
Following an
election victory for the social democrats, Gabi Burgstaller became governor on 28 April 2004.
She was Salzburg's first female governor, the second female governor in Austrian history (after
Waltraud Klasnic), and the first post-
World War II governor of Salzburg not from the
ÖVP.
She won the 2009, Salzburg State Elections with a 39.4% of the votes, losing a 6.0% and two seats, from 17 to 15.
After a major financial scandal striking the administration of the Land Salzburg she sustained a historic loss in the elections on 5 May 2013. SPÖ lost 15,56% and Burgstaller resigned. She was succeeded as governor by
Wilfried Haslauer (ÖVP).
References
External links
State of Salzburg - Governor Gabi Burgstaller
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burgstaller, Gabi
1963 births
Living people
People from Vöcklabruck District
Austrian socialist feminists
Social Democratic Party of Austria politicians
University of Salzburg alumni
Women governors of Austrian states
20th-century Austrian women politicians
20th-century Austrian politicians
21st-century Austrian women politicians
21st-century Austrian politicians
Governors of Salzburg (state)