Michelle Muscat actively campaigned for Robert Abela to win Labour leader election

Former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat's wife has actively campaigned, worked for and supported Robert Abela in his run-up to becoming new Labour leader and Prime Minister.

Speaking to sister paper Illum, sources said that Muscat had been in communication with various individuals during the campaign and had actively messaged several Labour Party members to vote for Abela.

Abela was contesting against Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne who had been the favourite up to election night.

Sources said that even people close to Muscat had been unofficially working for Abela to win the race. Her support might be interpreted as one of the reasons behind Abela's landslide victory against his opponent after starting on shaky ground in a campaign that lasted less than a month.

While Abela had promised to be the continuity candidate after Muscat tendered his resignation, more than a dozen members at OPM have been told to leave since he walked through the doors of Castille, and several continuing consultancies have not been renewed.

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