VALLETTA (MALTA) (ITALPRESS/MNA) – The Labour Party has won Malta’s general election, according to early vote-count sampling conducted by agents of the two major parties as counting got underway.
Speaking at the counting hall in Naxxar, Nationalist Party General Secretary Charles Bonello said the PN expects to lose by around 18,000 votes.
Labour supporters celebrated the projected victory with chants of “Viva l-Labour”, “Robert tagħna il-mexxej Alleluia”, and “ir-raba’ rebħa” (the fourth victory).
While final results and parliamentary seat allocations are still pending, the sampling has effectively ruled out any surprise outcome.
All published opinion surveys during the election campaign had pointed towards a Labour victory.
Despite the defeat, Bonello highlighted positive signs for the PN, describing the result as the party’s strongest performance since 2008.
Projections also indicate that the PN may have won Gozo, the home district of party leader Alex Borg.
The election is set to make history, marking the first time since the establishment of Malta’s Parliament in 1921 that a political party has secured a fourth consecutive electoral victory.
Previously, only two parties had achieved three successive wins. Labour won in 1971, 1976 and 1981, while the Nationalist Party secured victories in 1998, 2003 and 2008.
The final margin of victory and the composition of the next Parliament will become clearer as counting continues.
– photo Martin Agius –
(ITALPRESS).
