Babler grew up in a Semperit family in Möllersdorf, part of the municipality of Traiskirchen. He went to technical college in Mödling and subsequently worked in machine construction, as a warehouse labourer, and in a mineral water bottling plant.[5][6] After starting his career in politics, he studied political communication at the University for Continuing Education Krems (MSc).[7]
Political career
In 1989, Babler joined the Socialist Youth Austria (SJÖ), where he rose to become the state secretary for the SJ Lower Austria, then the federal secretary of the SJÖ, and lastly vice president of the International Union of Socialist Youth (IUSY). In 1995, he became a member of the town council of Traiskirchen. He became mayor of Traiskirchen in 2014. In his first election he received the best election result for the SPÖ in Traiskirchen since 1945: 73.1 percent, an increase of 4.2%.[8]
Babler has received regular nationwide attention due to the Traiskirchen refugee camp, the largest refugee camp in Austria and one of the largest in Europe.[9][10] In the 2023 Lower Austrian provincial election, Babler received 20,000 preferential votes.[11] Traiskirchen was one of very few towns with increases for the SPÖ.[12] Subsequent to this success, he was named the chairperson of a reform commission of the Social Democratic Party of Lower Austria.[11] Following his success in the Lower Austrian provincial election in 2023, Babler was appointed member of the upper chamber of the Austrian Parliament, the Federal Council (Bundesrat), as a representative for Lower Austria in March 2023.[13][14]
On 23 March 2023, Babler announced his candidacy for the 2023 Social Democratic Party of Austria leadership election as a surprise candidate.[15][16][17] The results of the membership election were announced on 22 May 2023 and Babler came in second with 31.5% of the votes.[18] Babler and other party members requested that a run-off among the party members should be held between him and Hans Peter Doskozil, who came in first at 33.7%; the SPÖ leadership decided in a vote of 25–22 against it. Instead, an election for the party chair with the candidates Doskozil and Babler was held among 603 delegates at an extraordinary party congress on 3 June 2023.[19] According to the first counting of the ballot on 3 June 2023, Doskozil won over Babler with 53% versus 47% of the votes.[20] As the ballot was recounted on 5 June 2023, it was found that during the first counting the votes for Babler erroneously had been attributed to Doskozil and that vice versa the votes for Doskozil erroneously had been attributed to Babler. Babler accepted his election as party leader on 6 June 2023.[1][21][22]
