Gabi Burgstaller (born 23 May 1963) is an Austrian politician, and the current governor (Landeshauptfrau) of the State of Salzburg.

She was born in Penetzdorf/Niederthalheim near Schwanenstadt in Upper Austria. After matriculation at a high school in Gmunden and one year abroad in England, she studied Law at the University of Salzburg. From 1987 until 1989 she worked as an assistant at the Institutes for Constitutional and Administrative Law, and Sociology of Law respectively at the same university. From 1989, Mrs. Burgstaller worked as a consumer consultant at the Salzburg Chamber of Labour. There, specializing in residential rights and tenancy law, she earned an excellent reputation acting on behalf of 25.000 investors defrauded by the WEB-IMMAG building trust company.^[1]

In 1994, she started her political career as a Member of the State Government, whereas she acted as chairperson of the Austrian Social Democratic Party (SPÖ) right from the beginning. On April 27, 1999, Burgstaller was elected State Councillor in Salzburg's State Government . In the Government Burgstaller was responsible for female concerns, construction, trade, consumerism, and traffic.^[1]

On March 31, 2001, Burgstaller was elected as the first woman to head Salzburg's Social Democractic Party with an approval of 98% of delegates. On April 25, she was appointed as first deputy governor of the State of Salzburg. Her agendas included the purviews of communities, health and youth issues, and again female concerns and consumerism.^[1]

Following an election victory for the social democrats, Gabi Burgstaller became governor on April 28, 2004.^[1] She was Salzburg's first female governor, the second female governor in Austrian history (after Waltraus Klasnic), and the first post-World War II governor of Salzburg not from the ÖVP.^[2].

She won the 2009 Salzburg State Elections with a 39.4% of the votes, losing a 6.0% and two seats, from 17 to 15.^[3]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• State of Salzburg - Governor Gabi Burgstaller

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