Momentum calls for electoral reform on Sette Giugno

Momentum has called for comprehensive electoral reform on Sette Giugno, saying that thousands of Maltese citizens who voted in the 30 May general election will have no representative in the new parliament.

“The men and women who shaped this country’s democratic history did not fight for a parliament that works for two parties only. The 8,694 people who voted for Momentum and ADPD last Saturday deserve representation,” said Mark Camilleri Gambin, Momentum’s General Secretary.

Sette Giugno marks the deaths of six men killed in 1919 when colonial authorities fired on crowds demanding democratic rights for Maltese citizens. Their deaths led to the establishment of self-government in Malta, though women and many men were still excluded from voting at the time. One hundred and seven years on, Momentum says the democratic deficit has not been fully addressed.

The party pointed out that the 4,700 citizens who voted for Momentum and the 3,994 who voted for ADPD together cast enough votes to merit two seats under Malta’s system of proportional representation, yet neither party secured a seat.

Momentum also raised concern over how the gender corrective mechanism operates alongside this gap. Under that mechanism, seats are allocated to candidates who received far fewer than 1,000 votes, while no equivalent mechanism exists for smaller party voters. The party said it supports measures to encourage greater representation of women in parliament, but argued there is a deep injustice in a system that corrects one democratic deficit while ignoring another.

It noted that ADPD chairperson Sandra Gauci, who stood as a woman candidate for a smaller party and received a meaningful number of votes, was explicitly passed over by the gender corrective mechanism.

Momentum said it will continue to press for reform that gives every vote its proper weight.