UPDATED 6.30 A.M. on Tuesday

The Nationalist Party has formally requested a second recount of the 13th district and a recount of the eighth district after losing the majorities in those two districts to the Labour Party.

Vote-counting was completed early today, with Labour winning three seats on the eighth district (Birkirkara) to the PN's two. The elected candidates were Beppe Fenech Adami and Tonio Fenech for the PN and Chris Cardona, Edward Zammit Lewis and Edward Scicluna for the Labour Party. Claudette Buttigieg Pace just failed to make it for the PN in what was traditionally a Nationalist stronghold. The Labour advantage was of eight votes.

PN sources said that on the eighth district  a packet of 50 votes for Claudette Buttigieg Pace (PN) had been mistakenly transferred to Michael Asciak (PN) and  'lost' for the party when Dr Asciak was eliminated while Ms Buttigieg Pace was   still in the running - with Labour candidates Edward Zammit Lewis and Edward Scicluna.

In the 13th district (Gozo), where the PL also won 3-2,  the PN is saying that 10 votes for Paul Buttigieg (PN) were unaccounted for. Earlier, after a first recount, the Electoral Commission allocated the last seat to Labour candidate Justyne Caruana with an advantage  of nine votes over PN candidate Frederick Azzopardi. The parties had won two seats each on that district.

THE CASUALTIES

Deborah Schembri was among the most prominent of the new candidates not to get elected, the others being Manuel Delia (PN) and Claudette Buttigieg Pace (PN) who missed out by a mere eight votes.

But there was a whole list of serving MPs whose parliamentary career was cut short or who only have a chance of making it through casual elections.

Among them are Joe Debono Grech, Charles Mangion and Michael Falzon, who at one time all served as Labour deputy leaders. Dr Falzon has a slim chance of re-election from a casual election.

Other candidates who failed to get immediately re-elected were Luciano Busuttil, Chris Agius, Gino Cauchi, Anthony Zammit and Noel Farrugia on the Labour camp and Carm Mifsud Bonnici, Michael Asciak, Joseph Falzon, Karl Gouder, Charlo Bonnici, Frans Agius, Philip Mifsud, Censu Galea, Frederick Azzopardi and Edwin Vassallo for the PN.

NEW FACES

New Labour candidates Deo Debattista (first district), Etienne Grech (third), Konrad Mizzi (fourth), Chris Fearne (third and fourth),  Ian Borg (seventh), Godfrey Farrugia (seventh), Edward Zammit Lewis (eighth), Silvio Schembri (sixth), Manuel Mallia (nine and 10) Louis Grech (first and 11th) Edward Scicluna (fifth and eighth) and Franco Mercieca (13th) were elected.  Manuel Mallia, Edward Scicluna   and Louis Grech were elected from two districts.

Some new facesalso made it on the PN's side - Claudio Grech (first), Ryan Callus Sixth), Simon Busuttil (ninth and 11th) and Robert Cutajar (12th) have never been Maltese MPs before.

The PN will be credited four extra seats in terms of constitutional provisions to ensure that the number of its MPs reflects the number of first count votes. At present the results give the  PL a parliamentary majority of 13, which will be reduced to nine.

 

 

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