Casual elections for seats vacated by dual-candidacy MPs to be held next week

Casual elections to fill seats vacated by Labour MPs elected on two districts will be held on Thursday 7 April, Chief Electoral Commissioner Joseph Camilleri said.

Nominations for the vacant seats opened today after the writ to hold casual elections was issued yesterday. The writ was issued by the President after the dual-candidacy Labour MPs informed the Speaker, which seats they will be giving up.

Nominations remain open for five days and unelected candidates on the respective districts where seats are vacated can apply.

Nationalist MPs elected on two districts notified the Speaker on Friday morning, which seats they will vacate and the writ is expected to be issued later today. If all goes as planned, the casual elections for the PN’s vacant seats will be held on Friday 8 April and nominations open tomorrow.

Casual elections for nine seats vacated by PL MPs will be held on the following districts:

• 2nd District (seat vacated by Clyde Caruana)
• 3rd District (seat vacated by Owen Bonnici)
• 4th District (seat vacated by Chris Fearne)
• 5th District (seat vacated by Robert Abela)
• 6th District (seat vacated by Ian Borg)
• 7th District (seat vacated by Silvio Schembri)
• 9th District (seat vacated by Michael Falzon)
• 9th District (seat vacated by Clifton Grima)
• 11th District (seat vacated by Miriam Dalli)

Casual elections for seven seats vacated by PN MPs will be held on the following districts:

• 3rd District (seat vacated by Stephen Spiteri)
• 5th District (seat vacated by Bernard Grech)
• 7th District (seat vacated by Ryan Callus)
• 7th District (seat vacated by Adrian Delia)
• 9th District (seat vacated by Joe Giglio)
• 9th District (seat vacated by Robert Arrigo)
• 10th District (seat vacated by Mark Anthony Sammut)

In a decision earlier this week, the PL executive voted to decide which districts its dual-candidacy MPs will give up. The decision for Michael Falzon and Clifton Grima to both give up the 9th District meant that the only unelected Labour candidate on that district, Rebecca Buttigieg, will automatically become an MP. But it also created an opening for a co-option with the Prime Minister proposing former PL CEO Randolph Debattista.

READ ALSO: Labour MPs vacate ninth district seats

The decision to co-opt Debattista so early in the day was interpreted as a snub to PL candidates on the 10 District, who were denied the possibility of contesting a casual election despite Michael Falzon and Clifton Grima being elected there.

In the PN, the decision which seats candidates will give up is determined by the statute and is based on the least number of votes on the first count as a percentage of the district quota.

READ ALSO: Piccinino clarifies PN statute on how double-constituency seats will be vacated