AD 'encouraged' by local elections result

Alternattiva Demokratika chairman Harry Vassallo yesterday described his party's local elections result as "encouraging".

Addressing a press conference at the party's headquarters in Sliema, Dr Vassallo said that although none of AD's candidates had been elected, the party obtained an average five per cent of the popular vote in the elections it contested.

Dr Vassallo said AD had consolidated its core support. "It is significant that at Iklin we obtained 7.5 per cent of the votes as it was the first time we contested a local election there," he said.

Alternattiva won 7.6 per cent of the votes at Pembroke, 6.7 per cent at St Paul's Bay, 5.8 per cent at St Julians, 3.2 per cent at Mellieha and 2.7 per cent at Nadur.

The closest AD came to having a candidate elected was on the St Paul's Bay council, where Carmel Hili obtained 266 first count votes and was eliminated on the 10th count. Dr Vassallo said Mr Hili had not been elected for "a handful of votes".

"An AD candidate on the St Paul's Bay council would have created a new political balance as the Nationalist Party and the Malta Labour Party would have had four candidates each," Dr Vassallo said.

AD obtained 1.7 per cent of the valid votes cast in all localities where an election was held. Speaking to The Times, however, Dr Vassallo contested this working, saying one could not calculate an average by adding those localities which AD had not contested.

"The results we obtained confirm that AD has solid foundations in these localities. Given that many did not go out to vote, we recognise that our full potential has yet to be attained," Dr Vassallo said.