The Easter holidays brought about a break from politics, and perhaps a time for reflection for all three political parties.

Parliament has resumed after a two-week recess during which the number of political activities was limited to a minimum, although it is certain that the political machines kept going during this time too, considering that not a day can be lost as the election draws near.

We could be six months away from the election, or we could still be more than a year away from the big day. Nobody knows as yet, perhaps not even the Prime Minister, although by now it is probable that a schedule has already been set or is being drawn up.

The Nationalist Party has an advantage over Labour, in that it currently holds office and it is the one that will ultimately decide when the election will be held. As such, Labour has to bide its time and wait, and must be always at the ready for when Parliament is dissolved and the campaign starts in earnest.

Alfred Sant and his team have been preparing for the coming election ever since the last one was held and the Labour Party decided to retain him as party leader in spite of two electoral defeats in a row, not to mention the European Union membership referendum, an issue which many consider cost Labour much more than a simple defeat to the “yes” campaign.

Since then, the MLP has taken a string of victories at local government level which, together with the win in the European Parliament polls, have given the party a much-needed boost and more confidence in its prospects.

Labour has since been interpreting the local election results as a call for change. The fact that the party has been in opposition for nearly 20 years except for a 22-month spell between 1996 and 1998 justifies this claim, but at the end of the day Labour know that the real test is still to come, and that the battle is far from having been already won.

The MLP has prepared several documents covering all aspects of the political and social spectrum, documents which will no doubt form the foundations of the election manifesto. These have been shot down by the Nationalists as poor attempts, and it has often been repeated that what Labour is proposing is already being carried out.

What is ironic in the election race is that the party that is vying for government has as its leader a man who has been at the helm of the party for 15 years, has lost more national elections than he has won, and was unable to hold his government together the only time he was given the people’s mandate to lead the country.

On the other hand, the party that has been in power for so many years – again, excluding that 22-month brief Labour stint – has a leader who has been there for only three years, and is about to face the electorate for the first time as Prime Minister and PN leader.

And so the question is: will the people vote for the party which has been in opposition for 18 of the past 20 years, but which has a leader who has been there for three-quarters of this period of time, or will they go for the party that has led the country for these 18 years, but which has a new leader?

Labour will argue that three years are enough to gauge Dr Lawrence Gonzi’s credentials and that, after all, he played an important role in the PN government and party for a good part of those 18 years. For its part, the PN will claim that the people have already had a sour taste of Dr Sant’s leadership, and should not trust him with the government once again.