Judith Schwentner
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Judith Schwentner (born 2 September 1968) is an Austrian journalist and politician of
The Greens The Greens or Greens may refer to: Current political parties *Australian Greens, also known as ''The Greens'' *Greens of Andorra * Greens of Bosnia and Herzegovina *Greens of Burkina * Greens (Greece) * Greens of Montenegro *Greens of Serbia *Gree ...
who has been Vice Mayor of Graz, the second-largest city in Austria, since 2021. She has also served as councillor in the city government since 2019 and a member of the municipal council since 2021. She previously sat as a member of the National Council from 2008 to 2017.


Education and professional career

After attending an elementary school in the Eggenberg district of Graz and graduating from the Akademisches Gymnasium in 1986, Schwentner began Slavic and German studies at the
University of Graz The University of Graz (german: link=no, Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, ), located in Graz, Austria, is the largest and oldest university in Styria, as well as the second-largest and second-oldest university in Austria. History The univers ...
in 1987. She stayed in
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from 1992–93 for a research stay, and completed her studies the next year with a thesis on the life and work of the writer Avdotya Panaeva. She completed a supplementary course in "German as a foreign language" in 1993 and, in 2007 and 2008, a course on intercultural counselling for immigrants and organizations at the ''Innovative Sozialprojekte'' association. From 1994 to 1995 Schwenter worked as a foreign lecturer at the
University of Lviv The University of Lviv ( uk, Львівський університет, Lvivskyi universytet; pl, Uniwersytet Lwowski; german: Universität Lemberg, briefly known as the ''Theresianum'' in the early 19th century), presently the Ivan Franko Na ...
in
Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
. In the following years she returned to Graz and worked in journalism. From 1996 to 2000 she worked in the editorial department of the specialist magazine ''Camera Austria''. She joined the editorial team of the street newspaper ''
Das Megaphon ''Das Megaphon'' () is a street newspaper sold by homeless in Graz and other cities in Styria, Austria. It was started in October 1995 and is run by Catholic charity Caritas. The paper is published monthly with a circulation of about 13,000 cop ...
'' in 1993 and became editor-in-chief from 2004 to 2008. In 2003, during Graz's year as European Capital of Culture, Schwentner was co-curator of the project ''SPB.education.discourse.film.rock. Current art from St Petersburg''. From 2006 to 2008 she worked for Caritas Austria as head of the departments of development cooperation, children, and foreign aid. She was also director of the intercultural cafe and event centre Auschlössl.


Political career

Shortly before the 2008 federal election, Schwenter received an offer from
The Greens The Greens or Greens may refer to: Current political parties *Australian Greens, also known as ''The Greens'' *Greens of Andorra * Greens of Bosnia and Herzegovina *Greens of Burkina * Greens (Greece) * Greens of Montenegro *Greens of Serbia *Gree ...
to run for the National Council. She agreed to run and was elected as a representative for district 6A Graz and Surrounds. In her first term, she was spokesperson for women's issues and development. She was re-elected in
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...
as one of only two directly-elected deputies for her party; the Greens were narrowly the most popular party in Graz. From 2013 to 2017, she was spokesperson for social affairs and senior citizens. She left the National Council when the Greens lost all their seats in the 2017 election. In January 2019, Schwentner became city councillor in the municipal government of Graz after Tina Wirnsberger resigned for health reasons. She held responsibility for the environment and women's affairs. She was the Greens' lead candidate for the 2021 Graz local election and expressed ambition to become mayor of the city. The Greens won 17.3% of votes and nine seats in the election, placing third. The
Communist Party of Austria The Communist Party of Austria (german: Kommunistische Partei Österreichs, KPÖ) is a communist party in Austria. Established in 1918 as the Communist Party of Republic of German-Austria, German-Austria (KPDÖ), it is one of the world's oldest ...
(KPÖ) became the largest party and entered coalition talks with the Greens and Social Democratic Party of Austria (SPÖ). Schwentner led the Greens in negotiations, which resulted in a coalition agreement between the three parties, with Schwentner serving as deputy to KPÖ leader Elke Kahr. She was elected vice mayor on 17 November, receiving 42 votes out of 46.


External links


Mag. Judith Schwentner
(National Council)

(Graz)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schwentner, Judith 1968 births Living people The Greens – The Green Alternative politicians 21st-century Austrian politicians 21st-century Austrian women politicians