If opinion polls are to be believed, Austrians will turn their backs on the two mainstream parties that have dominated the country since the Second World War. The president is a largely ceremonial figurehead, and the election is unlikely to have a direct effect on government policy.

But with anti-immigrant parties on the rise through Europe and the country already closing its borders to the refugees who poured through on their way to Germany last year, the vote could send shock-waves across the continent. The strong personalities who have dominated the race are also a clear sign of a country deeply divided by the migrant crisis, and with general elections due in 2018, they could be a sign of things to come.

Norbert Hofer, the far-Right Freedom Party’s (FPÖ) candidate, has carried his Glock pistol around with him on the campaign trail. He has argued a rise in gun ownership in Austria is a natural reaction to the migrant crisis. “In uncertain times, people try to protect themselves,” he has said. Before voting, he was in second place in the opinion polls, with 24 per cent support. Just ahead of him was Alexander van der Bellen, an independent candidate endorsed by the Green Party, with 26 per cent in a race considered too close to call. Read it all here...............