The counting of the votes cast in 67 localities across Malta and Gozo begins today at the Naxxar counting hall, as hundreds of candidates from all political sides wait to see whether their work as candidates was enough to bear fruit.
The counting process will be split into three days – today, Thursday and Friday – wherein the votes of a specific number of localities will be counted and announced. Votes will start being sorted each afternoon at 2pm while the counting process is expected to begin at 5pm. The electoral commission has estimated that the results for the day’s localities will be known by 11pm.
Votes for the local councils of Birzebbuga, St Paul’s Bay, Iklin, Tarxien, Zurrieq, Ta’ Xbiex, Ghajnsielem, Santa Venera, Mellieha, Pembroke, Zejtun, Mqabba, Valletta, Qrendi, Zebbug (Malta), Nadur, Balzan, Marsa, Fontana, Dingli, Xewkija, San Giljan and Ghasri will be counted on Wednesday.
Fgura, Marsaskala, Sliema, Rabat (both Malta and Gozo), Birkirkara, Lija, Marsaxlokk, Msida, Kalkara, Zabbar, Mgarr, San Gwann, Gudja, Paola, Bormla, Gharb, Ghaxaq, Xaghra, Sannat, and Pieta will know their councils on Thursday, while the remaining localities – Swieqi, Attard, Qormi, Naxxar, Mosta, Floriana, Luqa, Isla, Gharghur, Hamrun, Kirkop Gzira, Santa Lucija, Siggiewi, Xghajra, Mtarfa, San Lawrenz, Safi, Birgu, Munxar, Kercem, Zebbug (Gozo), and Qala – will be decided on Friday.
It is the first time ever that all local council are up for election at the same time and in fact elections took place in all localities save for one; Mdina, where five candidates, four for the PN and one for the PL, put their names forward for the five seats available, meaning that they could form the council uncontested.
Turnouts have however fallen across the board; 433,481 people were eligible but only 60% turned out to vote last Saturday. Compared to the last set of elections in 2013 and 2015, not a single locality registered an increase in turnout, with Dingli being the only locality with a turnout that exceeded 80% (the turnout was 81.29% to be precise).
Whilst localities such as Gzira (39.16%), Sliema (34.77%), St. Julian’s (33.96%) and St. Paul’s Bay (31.77%) all hold low turnouts – something which is not altogether unexpected given historical statistics and given the number of foreigners living in these localities – other localities registered substantially lower than usual turnouts as well.
In fact the most staggering decline was in Pembroke, which saw a meagre 36.30% turnout – a staggering 49.3% less than the turnout for the last local council which took place in 2013 (which was a general election year). While Pembroke is a Labour majority council (and has been so since at least 1999), it is thought that residents’ discontent following the saga surrounding the db project, may well have contributed to this year’s low turnout.
The PL and PN will be vying for supremacy in various battleground localities such as St. Paul’s Bay, Birkirkara, and Mosta along with smaller places such as Msida and Mtarfa, while smaller parties such as AD, PD and MPM – the latter two contesting in local elections for the first time – and likewise several independent candidates will be hoping to leave their mark in the few localities that they have fielded candidates in.
Follow The Malta Independent online for developments as from 2pm onwards