Even though counting of first preference votes did not start before about 8.30pm, the stacks of voting documents in the pigeon holes after they were sorted out, gave a good indication of how some candidates fared in terms of first-count votes.

Shortly after sorting started, Nationalist candidate on the 13th district Giovanna Debono was the first to get a very clear indication that she would be elected on first count.

Shortly after the PN started to get an indication that it was leading the race by a narrow margin, an overwhelming stack of votes accumulated in the pigeon holes allocated to Nationalist leader Lawrence Gonzi’s first-count votes.

It was then that PN agents in the counting hall erupted into a loud cheer as they chanted, “Nazzjonalisti, Nazzjonalisti”.

Meanwhile, as counting of sorted votes started later on during the day, it was Labour candidate Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca who had reason to celebrate as she found out that she had achieved a total of 5,490 first-count votes.

Clearly overcome by emotion, Ms Coleiro Preca expressed satisfaction and appreciation for the support shown by her constituents, particularly those from Qormi and Siggiewi.

Even though she calculated she lost about 1,000 votes due to the change in districts, Ms Coleiro Preca said she had not only made up for those “lost” votes, but had actually gained more than 1,000 additional votes.

“This is certainly encouraging for me to continue to champion the cause of the vulnerable, those who are socially excluded and children,” she said.

Second-time Nationalist candidate Franco Galea, on the other hand, has also done very well.

He expressed satisfaction that despite harsh competition on the fifth district he contested – with two ministers and a parliamentary secretary also running – it seemed that he had achieved a good number of first-count votes.

Other preliminary first-count votes in big numbers included those achieved by deputy Labour leader Charles Mangion (3,845) and Labour candidates Karl Chircop (4,377) Marlene Pullicino (2,060) and Roderick Galdes (1,634).

Giving his comments to The Malta Independent, Dr Chircop said it was the fourth time that he was contesting the general election and he was happy that he would be elected on the first count for the first time.

“This is the fruit of five years of hard work, during which I dedicated much more time to constituents,” he said.

Nationalist candidate Tonio Fenech, who also did very well on first-count votes, said he was particularly satisfied with the outcome of his result on the eighth district. He said the number of votes he achieved showed people’s appreciation for his work, particularly with regard to the euro and the country’s finances.