District 7 profile: The candidates on the hunt for votes

In this profile, Neville Borg profiles the seventh electoral district, which consists of Rabat, Żebbuġ, Dingli, Mtarfa, Mdina and Baħrija. Read all the district profiles here. 

District 7 is widely considered one of Malta’s bellwether districts, alongside the first district, offering a steady indicator of the country’s political temperature. Its mix of hunters, farmers and middle-of-the-road young families makes it one of Malta’s most diverse electoral races.

The district has frequently traded hands over the years, enjoying comfortable PN majorities throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, only to switch narrowly in 2008, when the general election was balanced on a knife’s edge. It has enjoyed a steady Labour majority ever since.

Last election, Labour elected three MPs from the district, winning 55.5% of the total vote, to PN’s 41.4%, which awarded them two seats.

It appears unlikely that the outcome from this month’s vote will change drastically from four years ago, although the PN will be hoping to narrow the margin this time around.

However, a revision of district boundaries carried out last year could make this an uphill task.

The electoral reshuffle saw the district lose the predominantly PN-leaning town of Mġarr, with its 3,700 votes, gaining Mdina (roughly 170 votes) and the Ħal Mula area of Żebbuġ, made up of 1,300 voters, in its place.

Hunters and environmentalists

Party insiders describe the seventh district as one of the most diverse in the country.

On the one hand, it features the often liberal, upwardly mobile young families who have flocked to Rabat and Żebbuġ, in the latter case electing an independent environmentalist, Steve Zammit Lupi, as the town’s mayor.

However, it also features the more traditional farming and hunting communities in its more rural areas of Dingli and Baħrija.

One party insider said the hunting vote has been particularly influential in past elections, although this might be slightly on the wane, with Mġarr no longer part of the district.

Otherwise, the district tends to be plagued by what another insider described as “petty local issues” similar to those in several other towns, from parking to housing issues and too few elderly homes to meet the demand.

Three ministers and a whip

The two most popular figures from the Labour ranks, ministers Ian Borg and Silvio Schembri, will once again be contesting the district.

In 2022, Borg cruised to victory in the district, garnering a hefty 5,025 first-count votes, more than almost any other candidate nationwide, equivalent to more than a fifth of all the votes in the district.

Outside the two main party leaders at the time, Robert Abela and Bernard Grech, only Chris Fearne, Clint Camilleri and Alex Borg (the latter two in Gozo) topped the 5,000-vote mark at first count.

Schembri also performed strongly in 2022, winning more than 2,500 first-count votes. He is likely to retain the grace of the district’s hunting lobby, who typically view him, together with Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri, as their voice in parliament.

A third Labour seat hangs in the balance, with minister Julia Farrugia, popular doctor Malcolm Paul Agius Galea and party whip Naomi Cachia jostling for the spot.

Farrugia was the third PL MP elected outright in 2022 but has seen her stock gradually dip since she was first appointed to cabinet in 2020. Some insiders say she could struggle this time around, although she is believed to be a strong campaigner who is beloved among many constituent groups.

Likewise, Agius Galea has had a relatively quiet stint as parliamentary secretary, raising questions over whether he can significantly improve his tally from 2022, when he took over Schembri’s seat in a casual election. Nevertheless, he remains a well-known family doctor among Żebbuġ residents, having previously served as the town’s mayor.

Cachia, meanwhile, was one of six Labour women elected through the gender quota mechanism which came into force in the 2022 election. Having strengthened her profile since she was named party whip in early 2024, she will be hoping to now make her way to parliament on her own steam.

The party’s sleeper candidate comes in the shape of social worker and activist Omar Rababah, whose candidature prompted a series of Islamophobic attacks early on in the campaign.

Several insiders described his candidature as “a closed box”, suggesting that predicting his vote tally is nigh on impossible.

Other Labour candidates on the district, including MP Anthony Agius Decelis and domestic violence commissioner Samantha Pace Gasan, remain outsiders in the race.

Former PN leader dominates the blue vote

PN voters in the district, meanwhile, are likely to come out in droves in support of the party’s former leader, Adrian Delia. With his over 2,000 first-count votes, Delia was the party’s frontrunner in 2022 and PN insiders say this is unlikely to change this time around.

However, there will be several votes up for grabs with Ryan Callus, who won the party’s second seat in 2022, no longer on the ticket.

In 2022, both Delia and Callus had given up their seats after also being elected in other districts, replaced by Rebekah Borg and Charles Azzopardi.

The party had also won another seat on the district after a constitutional amendment to ensure proportional representation saw Ian Vassallo awarded a seat.

Party insiders say Vassallo and Borg are likely to vie for the party’s second seat in the district this month, with the latter, the only woman on the party ticket in the district, appearing to be in the lead.

“Ultimately, it all depends on where Ryan Callus’s votes end up going,” one PN insider said.

Four years ago, Callus had won just short of 1,200 first-count votes, less than both Vassallo and Borg, but pipped both to the post when inheriting votes.

Both Vassallo and Borg have grown their public profiles throughout the past legislature, the former within the health sector and the latter becoming the face of the party’s green credentials.

Borg is likely to resonate with the district’s moderate, more environmentally-conscious voting segment, one PN insider said.

Charles Azzopardi, the party’s other incumbent in the district, is likely to struggle with the loss of Mġarr, insiders say. Azzopardi is believed to have developed a strong voter base in the town, meaning he is facing an uphill struggle to repeat 2022’s performance in the district.

Other candidates on the party list remain rank outsiders. Popular vet Andrew Agius is prospected to fare better on the first district, where he is also contesting, while Paul Mazzola and Anthony Mifsud are both unlikely to leave a significant mark on the race.

Likewise, veteran campaigner Carmel Cacopardo, contesting on behalf of ADPD, Aħwa Maltin’s Iris Vella, Momentum’s Pierre Schembri Wismayer and independent candidate Noel Apap are all unlikely to spring a surprise once the ballots are in.

The candidates running on the district are:

ADPD: Cacopardo Carmel

Aħwa Maltin: Vella Iris

Labour Party:  Agius Decelis Anthony, Agius Galea Malcolm Paul, Borg Ian,

Farrugia Julia, Cachia Naomi, Pace Gasan Samantha, Rababah Omar, Schembri Silvio.

Momentum: Schembri-Wismayer Pierre.

Nationalist Party: Agius Andrew, Azzopardi Charles, Borg Rebekah, Delia Adrian, Mazzola Paul, Mifsud Anthony,  Vassallo Ian Mario.

Independent: Apap Noel.

Read all the district profiles here.