Election mode has not switched off

Among other statements made by Prime Minister Robert Abela during an interview with Times of Malta last July, stated that, since 1 June his focus has been on working as if the election were yet to come and determined to deliver all the pledges in Labour’s manifesto.

On its part, the Nationalist Party has also continued its regular political and campaign activities, with Alex Borg now confirmed as the leader to guide the party towards the next general election.

Yet politics is more than just speeches, campaigns, and headlines. It’s about shaping lives and building a legacy that outlives leaders. However, many individuals entering the political arena lack a clear sense of purpose, which causes them to become disoriented and ultimately lose their way.

Although the PL and the PN initiated their electoral campaigns in markedly different ways leading up to the last election, both shared a fundamental and easily identifiable characteristic—they tracked activity like doors knocked and calls made, but not the outcomes that drive votes. However, those efforts need to be measurable, optimised, and scalable.

According to Nationalist MP Julian Borg, the PN’s most significant opportunity for electoral growth is to engage the over 50,000 registered non-voters from the last election, instead of concentrating solely on winning over Labour voters.

Furthermore, PN leader Alex Borg introduced a new tracking system to monitor how often its parliamentary members engage directly with the Maltese and Gozitan public, thus setting certain standards to make sure every MP is in direct contact with people throughout the entire legislature, not just in the days leading up to a general election.

By now, Abela and Borg will surely have learned that, based on a few evident miscalculations that emerged from their last respective electoral campaigns, before formulating their political campaign strategy, they must conduct a comprehensive assessment of the political landscape. Campaigns that ignore data rely on assumptions. This results in misguided decisions regarding focus areas and strategies for success, a significant oversight by the PN. Alternatively, it would be more effective to base their strategy from the outset on genuine insights.

For political leaders, politics and elections pose a specific, clear communication challenge: What does it take to persuade a voter? Success in an election requires persuasion. Too often, though, politicians misunderstand the process of persuasion. The most common mistake is to believe that explaining a specific policy proposal will influence voters. That’s nothing but a deficit model of communication.

Both mainstream parties are brainstorming how to build a modern political strategy that wins, covering strategy fundamentals, voter targeting, field operations, digital marketing, messaging, and how to execute a strong get-out-the-vote plan.

The earlier the campaign, the better. Campaigns that start late are always catching up on voter contact, messaging, and momentum.

In preparing for any upcoming election, the focus is on assembling the team and defining a political strategy as early as possible. That early start gives time to test what works, refine the messaging, and build a structured plan instead of reacting under pressure.

Both the PN and the PL are currently engaged in this process, each employing their own unique approaches, and they will persist in their efforts until the electorate is called to cast their votes.

The most effective party candidates will be those who consistently engage and foster relationships with voters through genuine conversations.

For any political party, one of the most important concepts to establish early is its win number, the number of votes it needs to secure victory. Once it has that, it can work backwards from election day to map out how many voters it needs to contact, how often, and through which channels. This turns the campaign from a series of activities into a measurable plan.

A campaign team is the engine behind every strategy. Even the most well-crafted plan will fail without the individuals necessary to implement it effectively. As the campaign grows, structure becomes just as important as size, because scaling teams without structure leads to chaos. Top-tier campaigns are built around teams that possess both the scale to reach voters and the organisational acumen to execute efficiently. This suggests an expedited setup, reliable stability, and the means to expand their scope.

Politics is the skill of navigating what is feasible, what can be achieved, and the art of compromise. You can count on seeing this process conclude every single day until election day.