Four nominations were received for the casual election to fill the parliamentary seat vacated by Carmelo Abela in the third Electoral District, the Electoral Commission said.

In a statement, the Electoral Commission said nominations closed with four candidates contesting the seat. Abela resigned as an MP and was appointed as Speaker of the House.

The candidates hoping for a seat are Raymond Abela, Martina Paula Buhagiar, James Grech and Eric Plumpton.

Ray Abela, who served as an MP in the last legislature, is likely to be the front-runner in the casual election.

He achieved 999 first count votes in the election – over double what the combined total of the other three candidates was.  First count votes, though, counts for nothing in a casual election as the votes available will be only those belong to Carmelo Abela, who is vacating the seat.

The Electoral Commission also said that the counting of votes to elect the MP will take place on Friday, 26 June, at the Counting Hall Complex in Naxxar. The counting process will begin at 9am.