The more optimistic were thinking of a 90 per cent plus endorsement for Bernard Grech as he sought confirmation of the Nationalist Party leadership.

His detractors were hoping that the result would have been somewhere in the region of 70 per cent, which would have been more than enough for him to retain his position, but would not have given him the grasp on the party that he was vying for.

Bernard Grech himself would have loved to obtain more than 90 per cent, but people close to him were putting the bar at 70 per cent, perhaps intentionally lowering the expectations so that any result above that would have been described as a solid victory.

In the end, Grech finished in between, as 81 per cent of the PN councillors gave him the go-ahead to remain as party leader in a vote taken at the general council yesterday week.

It was immediately claimed on the PN media that Grech had obtained a “strong mandate” to carry on. A four-fifths endorsement was seen as a significant show of support.

The PN media continuously harped that the 90 per cent turnout had been excellent, and that the fact that Grech was able to attract so many votes in favour made it clear that the way forward for the PN is with Grech at the helm. The fact that this result was achieved in spite of the party coming from an electoral defeat was also highlighted by the PN media.

Grech mentioned numbers only once during his address soon after his re-election as party leader was confirmed. He said that he interpreted it as a growing support, since he had obtained 69 per cent of the votes when he had contested Adrian Delia for the leadership in 2020. That time, it was the party members who had voted; this time, the eligible voters formed a much smaller group, as the election involved only the councillors. In his speech, Grech said that he had work to do to convince those who did not want him as leader that he is the right choice.

Sole contender

It is not unusual to have a one-horse race. It has happened in the past, on both the PN and Labour Party side of the political spectrum, that leaders sought the support of their party structures in so-called confidence votes.

In this case, the foundation for the Bernard Grech confirmation as PN leader was laid on that Sunday morning when the party lost the election. Before the official result had been made known, but with indications showing that Labour had again won handsomely, Grech had announced that he would be seeking to be confirmed as party leader – even though the party had succumbed to its third massive electoral defeat.

This strategy stopped anyone else from contesting the post, if they ever had the inkling to do so. When Grech made his intentions clear, nobody dared to challenge him. In a way, the councillors had no other option but to confirm him. Had they not done so, it would have thrown the party into chaos.

And chaos is the last thing that the PN needs at the moment. In the past decade, it has changed its leader three times – in 2013, in 2017 and in 2020, more than it had done in the previous half century.

A new leader would have meant another trauma for the party, yet another new beginning.

That Grech took over the reins of the party just 18 months before the election gave him the perfect alibi. It was too little time for him to turn the tide, but it gave him enough time to settle down in the running of the party.

Now, having led the party to an election, and having been confirmed at the helm, what he has before him is a full legislature in which he is now expected to make a difference.

There will be no excuses to make in 2027.

Continuity with a difference

Grech’s decision to hold on to the leadership gave the PN a form of continuity.

But there is a difference now. Grech is no longer a co-opted Leader of the Opposition. And this has given him extra power in the corridors of Pieta’.

He no longer needs to appear grateful to the rebel MPs who put him there. Now he has the backing of the people.

And this has already led to some decisions which Grech would not have been in a position to make in the previous legislature.

One of them is the choice to leave out three veteran politicians from his shadow Cabinet line-up. It has probably cost him, vote-wise, in last week’s PN general council exercise. It is likely that PN councillors who are close to Mario de Marco, Chris Said and Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici did not like to see their political idols without a shadow portfolio.

Councillors who were close to former MPs who pulled out of the election campaign at the last minute – Mario Galea, Clyde Puli and Kristy Debono – may also have felt unhappy with the way things turned out. It is easy to think that a good chunk of the PN councillors who voted against Grech last week came from among the canvassers of these six.

Another tough call was the way Grech went into direct confrontation with Jason Azzopardi, who contested the election but failed to get elected.

The two went head-to-head after Azzopardi was irritated by a comment made by Grech about the expiry date of politicians. Eventually, Azzopardi chose to resign from the party rather than bring forward proof of allegations he had made about Grech. Councillors who backed Azzopardi probably chose to vote against Grech too.

Challenges

Grech will be facing two main challenges in the next five years – to put the PN back on its feet both from a financial and political point of view.

Having to do both at the same time will be an arduous task. Both need to be given priority because a party whose debt keeps growing and whose political relevance is decreasing is putting its future at great risk.

In his speech soon after he was confirmed as leader, Grech addressed both issues.

He said that he had asked for a revision of the party’s assets as a starting point from which he will then tackle the financial woes. The intention is to maximise the use of such assets and change business models to make them more suitable to today’s circumstances.

With regard to the political side of his task, he said his aim will be to work on improving the way the party communicates with the people to get its message across better.

One other aspect that Grech cannot ignore is that which has beleaguered the party for the last decade or so – and this is its unity. Too many times we have seen the PN struggling to show cohesion, and this certainly affected the way voters, particularly those who consider themselves as floaters, look at the PN. A party that is divided does not inspire confidence.

Speaking of voters, it must be pointed out that those who voted for the PN made it clear that they want fresh faces. More than half of the 35 PN MPs – 19 – are newcomers to the House of Representatives. This is a good sign, and a message that PN voters sent to the party.

Candidates who caused internal trouble either failed to make it or struggled to win a seat, which means that PN voters want to see change and, most of all, want the MPs to pull the same rope.

Grech is now leading a group of younger, more enthusiastic MPs who must all be willing to take the PN to the next level. One thing which all of them must keep in mind is that there will be times when they will have to sacrifice their own personal advancement for the good of the party. Most of all, they must keep in mind that no-one is bigger than the party, and if they take a selfish approach, the PN voters will not forget when they cast their preference again in 2027.