Just hours after the publication of the Times of Malta survey, which showed the Nationalists inching closer to Labour, Robert Abela pledged that a whopping 95,000 families will benefit from an additional COLA payment next year.
When Bernard Grech walked out of parliament on Monday night after the presentation of Budget 2024, the first thing he pointed out was that it failed to address the problems of overpopulation.
The soaring cost of living and overpopulation are clearly the two most pressing issues of the electorate.
But if our two main political leaders think they can rally support by throwing money at the problem or resorting to the usual ‘fear of foreigners’ mantra, they could well be signing themselves out of the political arena.
There is one common trend between all surveys carried out recently – Labour is bleeding votes by the day, but few of their losses are shifting to the blue side. An unprecedented number are choosing to remain non-committal or claiming they will not vote. Of course, many of those not committing will end up voting, but the numbers of those who feel politically orphaned is growing.
The recent shifts in Malta’s political landscape are more than just numbers on a chart or fluctuations partisan power dynamics. They signify a potentially crucial juncture demanding a deep introspection, especially from the two main political parties.
From an almost 40,000-vote PL majority in the 2022 general election, the margin has significantly reduced to 13,500 votes, according to the Times of Malta survey. Still, Abela maintains a strong lead in popularity over Grech.
The Labour Party needs to take an honest look at itself and ask why the voters it won over in the last 10-15 years have started deserting it in droves. These are not mainly the kinds of people who will buy into Labour’s indiscriminate financial handouts, which look increasingly like an electoral ploy rather than a genuine effort to help the people.
"The Labour Party needs to take an honest look at itself and ask why the voters it won over in the last 10-15 years have started deserting it in droves"
It is common for a party which has been in power for more than 10 years to face disgruntlement and voter fatigue, especially when faced with unprecedented inflation. It is also a fact that the Labour government is behind the most disgraceful scandals of our generation and has squandered hundreds of millions because of incompetence or corruption.
While Budget 2024 did address some social concerns, the neglect of middle-class concerns and the total disinterest in the environmental and educational sectors, as well as the failure to signal a change in the economic model, could lose the Labour Party more support.
The surveys show Roberta Metsola’s runaway popularity might be the answer to the PN’s chance to reverse the losing trend since 2008. But, in reality, one person alone cannot bring about such a change.
The PN needs a departure from the status quo, necessitating a profound transformation, not just in leadership, but in ethos. The party’s success cannot solely hinge on leveraging populistic sentiments or rely solely on the fact that the Labour government is connected with dozens of scandals.
It needs to regain trust and relevance, rebrand, regroup, embrace progressiveness and most crucially, inspire. Innovation and inclusivity, not dogma, should guide their trajectory. The party administration needs to stop looking inwards and realise that society, especially, the younger generation, thinks differently than it did just 20 years ago.
The floating voter will play a crucial role in the next general election more than ever.
Both major parties need to clean up, recalibrate their strategies and go beyond political brinkmanship, if they are to stop haemorrhaging votes or pave the way to another political force. The electorate deserves a political landscape that transcends superficial loyalties and party biases.