The overriding numbers to look out for as the election results start coming in are the number one votes each party obtains.

But there are other considerations which come into play before and after as the country waits to know who will win the Battle for Castille.

The first figure one could ponder on is the 5,266 uncollected votes, more than twice that of 2003, meaning that just under two percent of registered voters were not bothered to have the possibility of voting. That, in itself, could signify a protest.

Next comes voter turnout.

At the 2003 general election, turnout was 96 percent, with turnout being highest in the seventh district (97 percent) and the lowest being 95 percent in the ninth, tenth, twelfth and thirteenth districts. The significantly lower percentage turnout reported yesterday could also indicate a protest. Not good news, particularly for the Nationalists. It is worth noting, however, that the districts with the lowest turnout yesterday also had the lowest turnout in 2003, although the declines are steeper this time.

But a lot hinges on how the percentage of first count votes goes.

Put simply, in terms of the Constitution, the party winning an absolute majority of first count votes will be guaranteed a parliamentary majority proportional to the percentage of its first count votes.

Should no party win an absolute majority of first count votes but only two parties are elected to parliament, the party winning the relative majority of votes is still guaranteed a majority of parliamentary seats and can govern.

It becomes tricky if no party wins an absolute majority of votes, and more than two parties have candidates elected to parliament.

In that case, the parliamentary seats won by each party come into play. Any party which has a majority of seats will form the next parliament, even if another party has more first count votes.

Should no party have a majority of seats, coalitions will have to be sought.

The last coalition government was formed way back in 1953 between the Nationalist Party of George Borg Olivier and the Malta Workers' Party headed by Paul Boffa. That government only lasted till the end of 1954.