Othmar Karas
Othmar Karas First Vice-President of the European Parliament | |
---|---|
Assumed office 18 January 2022 | |
President | Roberta Metsola |
Preceded by | Roberta Metsola |
Vice-President of the European Parliament | |
In office 3 July 2019 – 18 January 2022 Serving with See List | |
President | David Sassoli |
In office 18 January 2012 – 30 June 2014 Serving with See List | |
President | Martin Schulz Gianni Pittella (acting) |
Member of the European Parliament for Austria | |
Assumed office 1 July 1999 | |
Leader of the Austrian People's Party in the European Parliament | |
In office 1 July 1999 – 2019 | |
Leader | Wolfgang Schüssel Wilhelm Molterer Josef Pröll Michael Spindelegger Reinhold Mitterlehner Sebastian Kurz |
Personal details | |
Born | Ybbs an der Donau, Austria | 24 December 1957
Political party | Austrian People's Party |
Other political affiliations | European People's Party |
Spouse | Christa Waldheim |
Children | 2 |
Education | University of Vienna University of St. Gallen |
Website | Official website |
Othmar Karas (born 24 December 1957) is an Austrian politician who has been serving as the First Vice-President of the European Parliament since January 2022,[1] having been a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 1999. He is a member of the Austrian People's Party (ÖVP), which in turn affiliates with the European People's Party.
Karas sits on the
Education and early career
- Manager in the banking and insurance sector (since 1981)
- Magister of Philosophy, political science, University of Vienna (1996)
- Master of European and International Business Law (MBL), University of St. Gallen (1997)
- Doctor of Philosophy, political science, University of Vienna (2017)
- Assistant Secretary-General of Bundesländer Versicherung (currently on leave of absence)
Political career
Beginnings
- Federal president of the Union of Students (1976–1979)
- Political adviser to the ÖVP (1979–1980)
- First Vice-Chairman of the Austrian Federal Youth Association (1980–1990)
- Federal Chairman of the Young ÖVP (1981–1990)
- Member of the national executive of the ÖVP (1981–1991)
- Secretary-General of the ÖVP (1995–1999)
- Vice-President of the Young European Christian-Democrats (EUJCD) (1981–1990)
- Member of the EPP Bureau and Council (since 1995)
- Member of the steering committee of the European Democrat Union (EDU) (since 1995)
- Member of the National Council (1983–1990)
Member of the European Parliament, 1999–present
Karas has been a
In the European Parliament, Karas has become one of the center-right's experts on
In addition to his committee assignments, Karas has been the chairman of the parliament's delegation to the EU-Russia Parliamentary Cooperation Committee since 2014. He previously serves as member of the delegation for relations with
Within his political bloc, the centre-right European People's Party Group, Karas served as the group's spokesperson on economic affairs from 2002 until 2004 and as vice-president and treasurer from 2004 until 2011. From 2011 until 2019, he led the ÖVP delegation within the EPP group.
In the 2009 European elections, the ÖVP leadership replaced Karas by Ernst Strasser as its lead candidate for the European Parliament;[6] Strasser later had to resign as a consequence of the 2011 cash for influence scandal. Ahead of the 2014 European elections, the ÖVP re-nominated Karas as its lead candidate. At the time, he was considered by Austrian media as a possible successor to Johannes Hahn as Austrian nominee for European Commissioner.[7]
Since the 2019 European Parliament election, Karas has been serving as one of its Vice-Presidents; in this capacity, he is part of the Parliament's leadership under President David Sassoli.[8][9]
In 2021, Karas was appointed to the
In late 2021, Karas announced his candidacy to succeed Sassoli as President of the European Parliament.[11] The EPP selected Roberta Metsola as their candidate for President to succeed Sassoli, and she was elected President on 18 January 2022.[12] On the same day, Karas was elected First Vice-President of the European Parliament.[1]
In 2024, Karas was the winner of the "Lifetime Achievement" award at The Parliament Magazine's annual MEP Awards.[13]
Political positions
Following the 2014 elections, Karas joined fellow MEPs
In 2020, Karas led an initiative of nearly 40 other EPP members who pushed to expel Tamás Deutsch from their parliamentary group after the latter had compared comments made by group leader Manfred Weber to the slogans of the Gestapo and Hungary's communist-era secret police; Deutsch was eventually suspended but not expelled from the group.[15]
Timeline of positions held
- Hilfswerk Austria, President (since 1998)
- Political Academy of the Austrian People's Party, Vice-President
- Austrian Society for China Studies (ÖGCF), Member of the Presidium
- Austrian Association of Graduates, Member of the Board
- Institute for Public Social Responsibility, Member of the Board of Trustees
- Kangaroo Group, President (2009-2013), Member of the Board (since 2013)
EU expenses scandal
In 2005, EU parliamentarian Hans Peter Martin revealed that Karas collected thousands of euros of "daily allowance" of 262 euros a day, even though he was often only in Brussels for a few hours on those days or it was a matter of holiday weeks.[16]
Awards
- 2003 – Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria
- 2024 - Winner, Lifetime Achievement Award, The Parliament Magazine's MEP Awards.[13]
Private life
Karas is married to Dr. Christa Waldheim-Karas, daughter of Kurt Waldheim and Elisabeth Waldheim.
References
- ^ a b c "Parliament's new Vice-Presidents | News | European Parliament". www.europarl.europa.eu. 2022-01-18. Retrieved 2022-01-18.
- ^ Members of the Subcommittee on Tax Matters European Parliament, press release of July 9, 2020.
- European Voice.
- ^ John O'Donnell and Claire Davenport (February 28, 2013), EU clinches deal to cap bankers' bonuses Reuters.
- European Voice.
- European Voice.
- ^ Thomas Mayer (May 7, 2014), Othmar Karas könnte Johannes Hahn als EU-Kommissar ersetzen Der Standard.
- ^ The new European Parliament Vice-Presidents European Parliament, press release of July 3, 2019.
- ^ Karas zum Vizepräsidenten des EU-Parlaments gewählt Die Presse, July 3, 2019.
- ^ Mia Bartoloni (January 15, 2021), Movers and Shakers The Parliament Magazine.
- ^ Maïa de La Baume (16 November 2021), Maltese MEP Roberta Metsola will seek Parliament presidency Politico Europe.
- ^ "Roberta Metsola elected European Parliament president in landslide victory". Times of Malta. Retrieved 2022-01-18.
- ^ a b "MEP awards: Seven lawmakers recognised for outstanding contribution to EU policymaking". Euronews. 21 March 2024. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- European Voice.
- ^ Maïa de La Baume (December 17, 2020), EPP sanctions head of Viktor Orbán’s MEPs Politico Europe.
- ^ GmbH, news networld Internetservice (2005-02-09). "- Neuer EU-Spesen-Skandal: Umstrittene Unterschriften von VP-Karas". news.at (in German). Retrieved 2020-03-03.
External links
- Official website (in German)
- Personal profile of Othmar Karas in the European Parliament's database of members
- Declaration[PDFfile)