Jörg Haider, the leader of the extreme-right Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ), who sparked outrage with comments praising Nazi policies, has died in a car crash. Haider, 58, was driving his official car in the early hours of Saturday when it veered off the road south of Klagenfurt, the capital of the province of Carinthia, of which he was governor. He suffered serious head and chest injuries when the car turned over several times, and died while on his way to hospital, police said. According to police investigations, Haider was driving at 142 km/h on a road where only 70 km/h was permitted.
Austrian president Heinz Fischer said Haider was a "politician of great talent" who "aroused enthusiasm but also strong criticism." Werner Faymann, the Social Democratic Party leader who is expected to form a new government following last month’s elections, called Haider "an exceptional politician." Green Party leader Eva Glawischnig spoke of the "tragic death of one of the most outstanding and controversial Austrian political figures of recent decades."
Haider's BZÖ scored 10.7 per cent of the vote in the September election, making it the fourth largest party behind the other far-right group, the Freedom Party (FPÖ), which Haider had previously led.