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)