Austrians reject far right in presidential election: projections

VIENNA (Reuters) - An environmentalist candidate has a clear lead in Austria's presidential election, projections showed on Sunday after polls closed, dealing a blow to his rival's bid to become the first freely elected far-right head of state in Europe since World War Two. If confirmed, the re-run result will be a relief for Europe's political establishment and a vindication for former Greens leader Alexander Van der Bellen, who narrowly defeated Norbert Hofer of the anti-immigration Freedom Party in the original runoff in May, before the re-run was ordered. Van der Bellen had a clear lead over Hofer, according to a projection by pollster SORA for broadcaster ORF that included a partial vote count. The projection showed Van der Bellen on 53.6 percent and Hofer on 46.4 percent, with a margin of error of 1.2 percentage points. The projection will be updated throughout the evening. (Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Michael Shields)