The process of engaging former Nazi party members in the establishment of a liberal democracy in Austria

Due to denazification regulations in the first years after World War II, former Nazi party members were excluded from any form of official political life in the reborn republic. Therefore, to break that isolation, they decided to team up with two liberal journalists, Herbert Kraus and Viktor Reimann, who advocated lifting any restrictors targeted at this social group mainly to prevent the growth of their hostility towards the reborn republic and to facilitate reconciliation between victims of the Third Reich and their oppressors. Finally, in 1949 the party Federation of Independents (VdU) under leadership of Kraus was founded. One of its main goal was to represent the interests of former Nazis. The party managed to win seats in National Council, but soon after its foundation, an internal confl ict between liberals and German nationalists began. That undermined its position severely. In consequence, in 1956 VdU merged with Freedom Party, which led to the establishment of a rightwing populist party Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ). Until today FPÖ plays an important role in the Austrian political life