The Times has on various occasions concluded that the Nationalist Party was the best party for the country. It also concluded that Lawrence Gonzi was the man best positioned to deliver.
One thing it has never done is question the integrity of Alfred Sant, who resigned as leader of the Labour Party on Monday.
His success in building a new Labour Party should not be underestimated. He took a party that was bogged down by violent and shady elements and patiently brought round its most diehard socialists to the idea of free markets without protection for local enterprise, modern economic thinking and corporate governance.
After his electoral victory in 1996, Dr Sant kept the celebrations in check. The fact that they went on without a hitch, without any unpleasantness, let alone violence, will remain one of the most tangible examples of his turnaround of the party.
He is not without his faults. He believed deeply that European Union membership was not the right option for Malta and insisted on a paternalistic "I know better" even after the referendum, creating unnecessary instability. The same attitude resulted in the resignation of his closest advisers and evident internal dissent over the introduction of CET, the freezing of Malta's EU application and the revision of water and electricity tariffs.
There was also a time when he was caricatured as the "Dr No" of Maltese politics, objecting to just about everything and everyone. The stigma haunted him all through the 10 years that he was in opposition. Having said that, it needs to be said that there were occasions where he agreed - and even supported - the government's strategy on given issues, financial services perhaps being the best example.
Dr Sant's party may have criticised details and concepts but the job of the opposition is to refine and improve, to question and to challenge. The trick is to know where to stop.
In the end, it was one of his own party - former Prime Minister and former MLP leader Dom Mintoff - who cut short his legislature in 1998. Alas, that sad episode in Malta's political history and in the annals of the MLP seemed to have had to do more with personal pique than substance. The bottom line remains that Dr Sant was unable to fulfil his five-year plan and, thus, no one will ever know what he would have achieved had he been allowed to fulfil his term. This must surely be the bitterest pill that Dr Sant must swallow as he walks away from politics. He did not get the chance to prove himself - even to himself.
Issues he and the party he led raised over the years and throughout this election campaign will haunt this and any government: the unsustainability of stipends that the Governor of the Central Bank has warned about repeatedly; the need to tackle health reform; the need to maintain fiscal discipline - especially now that a balanced budget is in sight ...
Dr Sant was dignified in defeat. His final message did not wallow in bitterness or paranoia (even if he has in the past indulged somewhat). He leaves the political arena knowing he won the highest number of first-count votes in this election, as the man whose party won more seats than the incumbent. Had a third party won a seat it would be Dr Sant at Castille, given the way the constitutional amendment applies, even if that means that the party representing the majority of the people does not have the right to govern.
All that is cold comfort for Dr Sant. He must now ponder his future. Whether he stays on as MP or withdraws from politics completely, he still has much to offer this country. It may be too soon for Nationalist voters to assess his performance dispassionately but, hopefully, the day will come when they too will realise that he served his country well, seeking what he believed in.