Steve Zammit Lupi will serve as mayor of Żebbuġ as an independent after an agreement was reached with Labour and Nationalist Party councillors elected in the locality. 

In a statement on Friday, Zammit Lupi confirmed that he had support from both parties for his nomination. 

"I will remain an independent mayor," he said, assuring that "the level of discussion and work from now on goes beyond partisanship". 

Labour also released a statement saying the PL councillors elected in Żebbuġ would be supporting Zammit Lupi's bid to serve as mayor. 

They said that an agreement was reached after discussions were held that "prioritised the best interests of the locality". 

It said that it was also agreed that PL's electoral manifesto for Żebbuġ will serve to inform the council's work for the coming legislature. 

However Zammit Lupi said that he has his own manifesto but would accept "any idea or proposal that will do good for Żebbuġ". 

Newly elected Labour councillor Joseph Agius will be serving as the village's deputy mayor, having been the PL candidate that received the highest number of votes. 

Zammit Lupi stormed the polls in Żebbuġ during the local council elections earlier this month, receiving a whopping 2,342 first-count votes. 

A popular independent councillor during the previous legislature, his favour among the people of Żebbuġ seemed to also have rubbed off on his mother, Lillibeth Zammit Lupi, who also ran for a seat on the same council and won. 

The rest of the council will be made up of four seats held by Labour and three seats held by the Nationalist Party. 

Although he achieved the highest number of votes in the locality, it was not guaranteed that Zammit Lupi would have served as the town's mayor. An agreement with either one of the big parties was needed in order for him to assume the role.