Dissatisfaction with politics kept voters away

Nearly half of the Maltese electorate who abstained from voting in the European Parliament elections did so because they were dissatisfied with politics in general, a Eurobarometer survey has shown.

Forty-nine per cent of Maltese respondents said they chose to refrain from voting because they "did not trust politics" and were "generally dissatisfied" - the highest percentage among all EU member states.

Yet, ironically, the Post European Elections Survey 2004 showed that 41 per cent of the 999 Maltese surveyed feel "very close" to one of the political parties, way above the EU average of 14 per cent that shared the same feelings.

The survey clearly shows the Maltese to have been the most obsessed with the EP elections among the EU25.

The 125-page survey report attempts to analyse what led to the very high abstention and protest votes against national governments in the June elections.

The survey showed that on average 22 per cent of those that forfeited their vote did so because of dissatisfaction with politics in general. In fact, the report indicates that those who refused to vote did not spontaneously choose to abstain at the EP elections for reasons associated with Europe.

On a general note, the survey reveals that more than two-thirds of voters aged 18 - 24 did not go to the polls as did 64 per cent of people with the status of manual worker.

Turning to Malta, the report tries to explain the reason for the high turnout (82 per cent).

"The right-left split is very marked in Malta. Due to lack of diversity of political proposals, the two major political groups alternate in power. Under those circumstances, not going to vote carries the risk of allowing the opposing party to become proportionally stronger."

The report notes that the two main political groups use the media intensively to inform the citizens. In fact, the Maltese ranked tops on the knowledge aspect, with 80 per cent saying they believed they had the necessary information in order to choose whom to vote for in the elections, above the EU average of 59 per cent.

Switching to those that abstained from voting, the survey says that nearly a quarter of the Maltese (24 per cent) decided to do so on the day of the election.

The statistics confirm, however, that elections were a national past-time for the Maltese.

A total of 61 per cent of local respondent said it was "very important" to know which political party gained the most seats in the EP elections - the highest among the EU25, where the average was of 47 per cent.

Equally, nearly three quarters (73 per cent) said it was very important to know which particular candidates would win seats in the EP. This is in stark contrast to the average of 35 per cent among the new member states.

The survey delves into the electoral campaign and the way the political parties tried to influence the electorate.

Twenty per cent of Maltese respondents said that political parties or candidates had called at their home. The rest of Europe seems to have been spared the propaganda (average six per cent), though the Irish managed to buck the trend with 68 per cent saying they had someone knocking at their door.

But Malta tops the polls again where the telephone was concerned, with 22 per cent saying they have been contacted by political parties or candidates. The average for the EU was just five per cent.

Likewise, 94 per cent of Maltese said they had received leaflets on the EP elections in their mailbox, in stark contrast to the EU average of 68 per cent.

The pro-EU feeling in Malta prevails, with 61 per cent saying they believed EU membership was a good thing for their country. Just 21 per cent of respondents said it was not. Still, an average 70 per cent within the EU25 said they believed EU membership was beneficial for their country.