For the first time ever, the party deputy leaders might be the ones taking centre stage in the forthcoming election campaign, which will commence on Monday.

The first real test for the newly elected deputy leaders is scheduled for next Saturday, on Dissett, which will feature a debate between Simon Busuttil and Louis Grech. It could well be the case that the outcome of this debate sets the tone for the rest of the campaign, with both sides eager to prove themselves, while denting their rival’s credibility.

Under normal circumstances, no political party changes its leader or the second in command on the eve of a general election. The only exception is when it is faced by circumstances outside its control, or as a last ditch attempt to try and regain some lost ground.

Officially, the PN as well as the PL have both attributed their decision to change their respective deputy leader at such a crucial stage as being a direct consequence of circumstances outside their control. However evidence may suggest otherwise.

The unexpected resignation of John Dalli from European Commissioner on 16 October was the development which triggered this sequence of events.  With its back against the wall, and facing a landslide loss at the polls, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi decided to nominate none other than his deputy for the vacant post in Brussels, opening the door for a change in the deputy leadership.

As a result, some have argued that Dalligate proved to be a blessing in disguise for the PN, as it was gifted the opportunity to renew its leadership. With a new face at the helm next to Dr Gonzi, the party would then try to lure back disgruntled voters, by emphasizing change  to counteract Labour’s strategy.

Though on paper little has changed in the PN from the end of November when Simon Busuttil became the new deputy leader, since Lawrence Gonzi is still the party leader, the PN has started  to reduce the gap, with latest surveys indicating that this has gone down by 4% to 8%. 

Whether this comeback can be attributed to Dr Busuttil is yet to be seen, but evidence suggests that alarm bells started ringing at the Labour headquarters, especially after the dismal performance of Anglu Farrugia in his ill-fated debate with Dr Busuttil on Xarabank.

As a matter of fact in less than a month Dr Farrugia became history, and Labour MEP Louis Grech has now entered the fray.  The PL has repeatedly said that Dr Farrugia was asked to resign following his remarks that Magistrate Audrey Demicoli could have acted with political bias when handing down a judgement over corrupt practices. In doing so Dr Farrugia played into the hands of his critics, as he made his position untenable, and handed the opportunity to the party to make amends for his dismal performance on Xarabank some days earlier. 

So far Mr Grech has been a success story in his eight years as an MEP, but  his appointment is still a gamble as he was always on the fringes of controversy.

The Dissett debate scheduled for next Saturday, when the new deputy leaders will come face to face, will probably attract unprecedented attention not only from the media, but also from party strategists and undecided voters. This time no side can afford any slip-ups, with both of them anxious to capitalise and take full advantage of each other’s mistake.

In 2008, the political debate between the respective leaders at the university as well as the face to face confrontation between Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando and Alfred Sant at the PBS studios proved to be crucial at the start and towards the end of the campaign.

This time around the debate between Dr Busuttil and Mr Grech, who incidentally are not MPs, and will be contesting the general election for the very first time, could be a watershed for the campaign.