Court orders Austria's voters back to the polls

The new election gives nationalist candidate Norbert Hofer another chance at victory after he was narrowly defeated by independent candidate Alexander Van der Bellen.

The final result could swing on the fallout from Britain's vote to leave the European Union.

It is a piece of judicial theatre: black-frocked judges rise from their seats and place purple velvet hats on their heads, the hats matching their purple velvet shoulder pads.

Then the Chief Judge of the Constitutional Court tells Austrians, "You're going back to the polls."

For the first time in Austria's postwar history, a national election will be re-run.

It is a victory for Austria's nationalist Freedom Party and its leader, Heinz-Christian Strache, who backed the investigation leading to the court's decision.

"When you look at the foundations of the democracy and rule of law, then the Constitutional Court has ensured that these offences will not be repeated. And there shall not be a situation where manipulation can't be ruled out."

The court said there was no evidence of manipulation but even the potential for it was sufficient grounds for a re-run.

The original poll had a former Greens leader, running as an independent, defeat the nationalist candidate by less than one per cent of the vote.

But back in May, the United Kingdom had not voted to leave the European Union.

The director of the Vienna-based NGO Go-governance, Dr Melanie Sully, says the fallout from Brexit could change everything in Austria's presidential election.

"In the first round, as it were, we had a little bit about Europe, but now I think, for this one, we can expect Europe to be really top of the agenda."

The winner of the now annulled poll, Alexander van der Bellen, campaigned as a European Union supporter.

The man he narrowly defeated, Norbert Hofer, is critical of the EU and has raised the possibility of a future referendum on EU membership.

He has not gone as far calling for one.

So who does Dr Sully suggest will benefit, the EU critic or the supporter?

"We can't really say at the moment who is going to benefit, because a lot of people are going to say, 'Well, leaving the EU is bad news. Austria is too small to take this decision, so linked to Germany, and, if the UK can't do it without getting clobbered, Austria has no chance.' So it might just not work for Hofer."

Austrians will closely watch the Brexit fallout as they decide who to support this time around.

But another issue could sway their decision: the failure of the electoral authorities to conduct a clean election and the Freedom Party's successful appeal against the result.

The editor of Der Standard newspaper and political commentator Eric Frey says the possibilities are worrying.

"If the previous result is confirmed, then everything is fine. Everything will have been passed, and we can say Austria is particularly careful about its democracy. If Norbert Hofer wins, and the result is overturned the second time, well, the thing starts to seem as if judges had intervened in the political causes, and this would cause a lot of discomfort in this country."

The botched election is embarrassing for Austrians but a schadenfreude moment for the neighbours.

In central Vienna, a German tourist recalls old stereotypes.

"The Germans are very strict about their laws, they are committed to standards, while the Austrians have this other mentality, saying, 'Yeah, it will be all right, it will work out okay.'"

But how will it work out?

If Austria sticks with the EU-friendly Van der Bellen, there will be a sigh of relief in European capitals.

If the Freedom Party's Norbert Hofer snatches victory, there will be fears for the union's future.