Vienna Election 2025: NEOS Top Candidate Selma Arapovic in Profile

Selma Arapovic is at the top of the NEOS state list for the Vienna election 2025 on April 27. The city councilor and former pink spokesperson for housing and urban development is now also the chairwoman of the NEOS faction in the town hall.

Family fled to Austria in the 1990s

The path to Vienna city politics was by no means predetermined: Arapovic was born on October 25, 1976, in Visegrad and grew up in Bosnia. With her family, she fled to Upper Austria after the outbreak of the war in the 1990s. She attended high school in Ried im Innkreis and later studied architecture in Graz. She then moved to the federal capital, where she has been working as an architect since 2006. She has also since passed the civil engineering exam.

Arapovic joined NEOS in 2014

The foundation for her political career was laid in 2014 when she first got involved with NEOS - at a time when people on the street still needed to be told who NEOS were, as she emphasizes. As a district councilor, she entered the district representation of Leopoldstadt in 2015. There, she was the NEOS club chairwoman for a while. In 2019, she was also included in the pink state team.

In 2020, she made the leap to the city council. In the city parliament, she served, among other roles, as deputy chairwoman in the committee for housing, residential construction, urban renewal, and women, as well as in the city council committee for innovation, urban planning, and mobility. A key focus in the concluding legislative period was, among other things, the amendment of the building code, which initiated more intensive protection for demolition houses.

Surprising Succession as NEOS Lead Candidate in Vienna Election

During the list creation for the Vienna election, she was elected to the second place on the state list by NEOS members. As expected, the party leader, Deputy Mayor, and City Councilor Christoph Wiederkehr was chosen as number one. However, he was nominated as Minister of Education a few days later. After a short period of consideration, he withdrew from the candidacy in Vienna - which granted the second on the list, Selma Arapovic, the first place.

At the same time, club leader Bettina Emmerling took over the education and integration department from Wiederkehr. Arapovic, in turn, moved up as chairwoman in the club. Since then, both politicians have been referred to as "lead candidates" by the Pink party - even though naturally, there can only be one person at the top of the state list.

Vienna's Danube Island as Favorite Place

Selma Arapovic's favorite place in Vienna is the Danube shore or the Danube Island. Her favorite colors are "Berry Pink" and "Olive Green." The mother of two children reportedly enjoys cycling through the city and loves gardening. She recently described "Feeling Good" by Nina Simone as her favorite song in a questionnaire.

About the person: Selma Arapovic, born on October 25, 1976, in Visegrad (Bosnia). Graduated from high school in Ried im Innkreis, studied architecture in Graz. District councilor in Vienna-Leopoldstadt from 2015 to 2020. Member of the Pink state team since 2019. Entered the municipal council in 2020. Elected as club leader in March 2025.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.