The PN is bracing itself for what party insiders fear could be some nasty surprises in the local council elections following a high turnout, as vote counting gets under way tomorrow.
The Nationalist Party’s declared target is to narrow the gap after a series of landslide defeats, most notably in the 2013 general election.
But PN sources told Times of Malta that the high turnout, especially in pro-hunting localities, did not bode well for it.
They explained that Labour stood a very good chance of mustering a majority in Siġġiewi for the first time and mounting a serious challenge in the Gozitan PN stronghold of Nadur.
There was also a high possibility of Labour regaining Mosta and keeping hold of its majority in St Paul’s Bay.
“Labour is set to obtain a strong result since it managed to mobilise all its voters, especially in Gozo, by urging them to vote Yes to retain spring hunting,” one source said.
Failure by the PN to make any inroads in this poll, in the wake of last year’s bad result in the European Parliament elections, will raise questions and pile more pressure on the party leadership, even though the general election may still be three years away.
Meanwhile, Labour sources said the party was confident of at least maintaining the overall 57 per cent majority achieved in the same localities in 2012 – and there was also the hope of making gains. In the case of Mosta, a Labour victory is quite plausible since in 2012 it obtained an overall majority, albeit by just 14 votes. However, it won fewer seats due to the transfer of votes in later counts.
As for St Paul’s Bay, in 2012 Labour won a majority for the first time when it garnered 514 more votes than the PN.
Though the performance of the Labour-led council in the last three years has been highly criticised, former Nationalist mayor Paul Bugeja could be a game changer as he is contesting on the Labour ticket this time round.
In Siġġiewi, the PN’s biggest threat is the high turnout witnessed for the spring hunting referendum. With just 206 votes separating the two parties last time, as well as the fact that an additional 141 votes are up for grabs due to the absence of independent candidates, Labour’s prospects of securing a historic win have never been better.
A similar scenario could unfold in Gozo, where the PN stronghold of Nadur faces an unprecedented threat. A worrying sign for the PN there is that, in spite of a 14 per cent increase in turnout when compared to 2012, it still struggled to mobilise its core voters. Though in 2012 the gap was of 385 votes in PN’s favour, which had obtained 58.4 per cent, Labour is expected to make significant inroads and possibly snatch the ultimate prize by taking control of this council.
As for Qala, which in 2012 was the major battleground in Gozo – Labour secured its first ever majority there by just seven votes – there are no clear indications of the outcome. Here, both parties are bracing themselves for another photo-finish result.