One year after the border between Hungary and Austria became a focal point of a mass influx of refugees to Europe, many of them heading for Germany, officials in both countries say the situation is largely under control.
 But  migrants continue to make their way into Hungary and across the border into Austria from areas of the Middle East, Afghanistan and Africa hit by conflict and poverty.
The situation has left many Hungarians and Austrians on edge and could shape the outcome of two votes on October 2, when Austria elects a president and Hungary decides whether to accept mandatory European Union quotas for resettling migrants.
 Many people in Austria, a country of 8.5mn  that has taken in about 110,000 asylum seekers since last summer, see a risk that the migrant crisis could worsen again. Although there is little evidence of it happening, they believe Austria could become the destination for migrants making their way from Africa through Italy.
 Such concerns could work in favour of far-right candidate Norbert Hofer in Austria’s election runoff. The first ballot, narrowly won by former Greens party leader Alexander Van der Bellen, was annulled because of technical irregularities.
 Similar fears could also help Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban persuade voters to reject the EU quota system following an aggressive government campaign in which billboards have been erected linking migrants to assaults and terrorism.
 Election of a far-right president in Austria and rejection of the quota plan in Hungary would be likely to damage the unity of the EU, which is already struggling to articulate a common vision after Britain’s vote on June 23 to leave the bloc.
 Few communities have felt the impact of the migrants influx more than Nickelsdorf, a town of 1,800 in the eastern border region of Burgenland surrounded by sunflower and corn fields.
 It was near Nickelsdorf that the corpses of 71 refugees were found in an abandoned truck, shortly before Austria and Germany threw open their borders to migrants on September 4 last year.
 Burgenland is a traditional stronghold of Chancellor Christian Kern’s Social Democrats. But two thirds of voters there backed the eurosceptic Freedom Party’s (FPO) Hofer in the presidential run-off in May that was annulled.
 Orban opposes the EU quota plan and hopes the October 2 referendum will strengthen his hand in dealings on the migrant issue with the EU and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
 The UN refugee agency has condemned Hungary’s refugee practices but criticism of the referendum and Orban’s stance on refugees has largely been limited in Hungary to small opposition and rights groups.
 Merkel and then-Austrian chancellor Werner Faymann suspended EU migration rules last year to allow in thousands of refugees who reached those countries via Hungary.
 Faymann quit in May after losing his party’s support, partly because of his handling of the crisis. Merkel has also faced problems and her Christian Democrats lost a regional election on Sunday to an anti-immigrant party.

Many people in Austria  see a risk that the migrant crisis could worsen again