Next Maltese general election
Maltese general election
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The next Maltese general election must be held not later than Saturday, 20 June 2018. The Labour government of prime minister Joseph Muscat, elected in 2013, will face the Nationalist Party of opposition leader Simon Busuttil.
Background
The last Maltese general election was held on Saturday, 9 March 2013. The Labour Party, led by Joseph Muscat, defeated the incumbent Nationalist Party of prime minister Lawrence Gonzi. Labour scored a landslide victory, taking 39 seats in the House of Representatives, against 30 for the Nationalist Party.[1] Muscat was sworn in as the new prime minister two days later, on 11 March. Lawrence Gonzi subsequently stepped down as leader of the Nationalists, with Simon Busuttil taking his place on 13 May. As of 2016, Busuttil will likely serve as the Nationalist candidate for PM in the next elections.[2]
Participating parties
The Maltese political landscape is regarded as one of the most pure two-party systems of the 21st century,[3] and has been dominated by moderate center-left and center-right groups for decades; no third parties have elected MPs since the 1962 election. In the 2018 election, the following parties are likely to run:
- The Labour Party (PL) of incumbent prime minister Joseph Muscat has held a majority in the legislature since the 2013 election, with 39 MPs of its total 69. The Labour Party traditionally pursues social democratic ideals, and is rooted in the mainstream European center-left. Furthermore, the PL is regarded as softly eurosceptic.
- The Nationalist Party (PN) of opposition leader Simon Busuttil is the only opposition party in parliament, having elected 30 MPs in the 2013 election. The party's last prime minister was Lawrence Gonzi, who also served as prime minister from 2004 to 2013. For much of its history, the PN has embraced conservatism and Christian democracy, as well as European integration.
- The Democratic Alternative (AD), led by Arnold Cassola since 2013, is the most successful contemporary third party in Malta. It is, however, not represented in parliament. Originally an offshoot from the Labour Party in 1989, the party stresses green politics and sustainable development.
Electoral system
The Maltese voting system is a variant of proportional representation, achieved through the use of the single transferable vote, with five MPs to be returned from each of thirteen districts. Overall, there are 65 constituency seats, with a variable number of at-large seats added to ensure that the overall first-preference votes are reflected in the composition of the House of Representatives.[4]
Opinion polls
References
External links
