Fans affectionately call him "the professor" -- and in the end Alexander Van der Bellen gave a lesson in election campaigning by fighting off the far-right to become Austria's new president. He will have earned some new friends among other EU leaders too after ballot re-run, in which he blocked Freedom Party rival Norbert Hofer from becoming Europe's only far-right head of state. But it has not all been plain sailing. Van der Bellen -- also known as "Sascha", a nickname that nods to his Russian roots -- was decried by critics as a "green dictator". The former Greens party leader, who ran as an independent, struggled to convince many conservative voters who accused him of pandering to the left.This video is not linked to a particular event concerning Alexander Van der Bellen but aims at keeping our archive base up to date This video is not linked to a particular event concerning Alexander Van der Bellen but aims at keeping our archive base up to date. SHORT PROFILE OF Alexander Van der Bellen