Nationalist MPs pushing for a change in leadership have begun talks to try to unite behind a single candidate to fight incumbent Adrian Delia.
A meeting was held on Monday afternoon with the majority of the MPs, in an attempt to offer party members a “clear choice”.
MP Karol Aquilina confirmed that a meeting was held to take stock of the “positive” result achieved on Saturday when 56 per cent of the party’s highest organ, the general council, opted for a leadership race.
Aquilina said that in order for the PN to make a fresh start it would be crucial to have candidates who enjoyed the widest possible support so as to start healing the wounds immediately.
“Our objective is to give party members a clear choice of who can bring back unity,” he said.
Sources said that the parliamentary group would try to persuade all those harbouring leadership hopes to ditch their ambitions and rally behind a single candidate enjoying widest support.
“Adrian Delia’s prospects of re-election would be boosted should the opposing camp become fragmented behind several candidates,” party sources told Times of Malta ahead of the meeting.
Though it is still early days and the electoral commission is yet to issue the expression of interest for leadership hopefuls to come forward, some names are already being mentioned.
MP Therese Comodini Cachia, MEP Roberta Metsola and lawyer Bernard Grech have been floated as strong possible contenders. Former executive committee president Mark Anthony Sammut, his successor Alex Perici Calascione and lawyer Joe Giglio are thought to be outsiders.
How will the new leader be chosen?
Under the PN statute it is up to the around 20,000 party members to elect the leader.
The process becomes more complicated if there are more than two candidates, as the list will have to be whittled down by the general council with the top two candidates qualifying for the final round.
The Electoral Commission has until Tuesday to issue a call for people interested in the post to submit their names and the contest itself is likely to take place in September.
Comodini Cachia is understood to be strongly considering running for leadership, as she had offer herself to succeed Delia as Opposition leader after he lost the MPs’ confidence in a vote.
Others are concerned that candidates who actively involved in ousting Delia could face a backlash from voters.
“This might hinder the prospects of Comodini Cachia and to a lesser extent of Metsola who was less vociferous in her criticism of Delia,” sources said.
For this reason, the possibility of Bernard Grech entering the race seems to be gaining momentum.
“Being an outsider, he has no such issue and there seems to be already a wave of support in favour of his nomination, while some of those loyal to Delia seem to be warming up to the prospect of him becoming leader,” sources said.
They added that the coming days could be crucial for the PN’s future as failure to rally behind a single candidate could result in the prolongation of the three-year saga which started when Delia burst into the scene.