Only 900 votes separated the two major parties in Gozo in the general election of 2017, which would explain the emphasis both have placed on this district during the electoral campaign, both paying bi-weekly visits to the island.
Prime Minister Robert Abela admitted as much last week when he told Gozitans he was counting on them to give him his first mandate to lead the government, saying they had been “instrumental” in the last general election.
Along the years, Gozo was always considered as Nationalist leaning but its hold of this district began to drift away after the 2008 election, when the PN lost thousands of votes from its previous showing.
In 2013, the shift was nearly sealed. Despite the PN garnering some 200 more votes than Labour, it was Labour that elected three MPs to parliament, against the PN’s two.
The PN eventually gained a third seat following the application of a constitutional amendment designed to ensure that the number of MPs in the House of Representatives is proportional to the total share of votes received by a party.
The same happened in the last election of 2017, when Frederick Azzopardi made it to parliament following the application of the amendment.
Labour elected Anton Refalo, Justyne Caruana and Clint Camilleri while the PN elected Chris Said, Marthese Portelli and Azzopardi. David Stellini then replaced Portelli who was elected on two districts.
But Stellini’s time in parliament was short-lived and he resigned to return to his posting with the European People’s Party in Brussels.
He was replaced by co-option by lawyer Kevin Cutajar, who had already unsuccessfully contested the election on Gozo.
What to look out for
Labour’s incumbents include present and former Gozo ministers Camilleri and Refalo, with the latter receiving the largest share of first-count votes, nearly 5,000.
However, newcomer Joetienne Abela could give them a good run for their money.
A surgeon by profession, Abela was asked to contest the election by none other than the prime minister himself, according to party insiders.
The party believes Abela could attract votes which previously went to Caruana, the former minister, who will not be contesting this time.
She had resigned as education minister in December following a job-for-a-friend scandal and a damning ethics report into an abusive contract awarded to her close friend and former Malta footballer Daniel Bogdanovic.
This was the second time she had to step down from cabinet, the first time being in January 2020 after Times of Malta revealed that her then-husband, former deputy police commissioner Silvio Valletta, was close to alleged Daphne Caruana Galizia murder accomplice Yorgen Fenech and had gone abroad on holiday with him.
Caruana was brought back to cabinet in November that same year and handed the education portfolio.
On the PN side, heavyweight Said is expected to give a good showing. Cutajar and Joe Ellis were both co-opted to parliament during the last legislature. Between them, they garnered 1,200 votes. Azzopardi, who passed away suddenly in October 2020, had 1,500 first-count votes.
MP Claudette Buttigieg, who is contesting this district for the first time, is hoping to take the lion’s share of votes previously given to Azzopardi and Portelli, now CEO of the Malta Chamber of Commerce.
In 2017, she won the second-largest number of first-count votes – over 2,600.
Main concerns
The top concern of Gozitan voters is by far the rate of construction on the island, with many worried that Gozo is fast losing its beauty, according to surveys.
People say the haphazard development is contributing to the island’s uglification.
Other concerns include jobs in Gozo and the weakness of the tourism industry after the coronavirus pandemic.
The candidates
Labour Party
Joetienne Abela
George Paul Camilleri
Clint Camilleri
Christian Joseph Zammit
Abigail Camilleri
Anton Refalo
Nationalist Party
Christopher Said
Joseph Ellis
Kevin Cutajar
Alexander Borg
Claudette Buttigieg
Josephine Xuereb
ABBA
David John Buttigieg
Radu Gheorghe
ADPD
Luke Joe Caruana
Independent
Nazareno Bonnici
Partit Popolari
Stephen Florian