3. Who is voting?

The Labour Party has opened up the leadership race to all paid-up members (tesserati) for the first time in its political history, as the Nationalist Party had done in 2017.

Around 17,500 Labour members are eligible to vote for their new party leader.

Tensions around possible vote tampering have grown in recent days, after it was revealed that Abela filed a formal complaint claiming that Fearne’s canvassers were discovered inputting the details of about 200 party members who had fallen behind on their fees, ensuring their eligibility to vote in the upcoming election.

However, the Labour Party has denied such claims, with their electoral commission insisting that robust security features are in place to ensure voter manipulation does not occur.

4. When will the result be out?

The official result should be out by the early hours of Sunday morning. However, expect a predicted outcome to be unveiled on Saturday evening. With counting starting that evening, a winner could be revealed on Saturday, especially if a candidate wins by a clear majority.

The new Labour Party leader will give his first official address at the Paola pavilion at 4pm.

An official date for the swearing-in of the new Labour Party leader as Prime Minister is yet to be set. However, it will likely take place on Monday 13th January.

5. Who are the candidates?

A physician-turned-politician and father of three, 56-year-old Chris Fearne is the current Deputy Prime Minister of Malta. He was also appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health back in April 2014, becoming Minister for Health two years later.

Four years after first being elected, Fearne’s next position was to be the second-in-command of the country, beating out Minister Edward Scicluna and EU Commissioner Helena Dalli for the post of Deputy Prime Minister.

While he has commanded important government roles for half a decade, Fearne’s tenure has not been without controversies, with an exuberant salary being dished out to close aide Carmen Ciantar and his dubious employment of Neville Gafa, who he later fired.

A lawyer by profession, Robert Abela is the son of George Abela, Malta’s President between 2009 and 2014. In Malta’s last general election of 2017, Robert Abela was one of the Labour Party’s fresh faces elected to parliament, making it to an MP at the age of 40 on the first time of asking.

Abela reportedly turned down a ministerial post, preferring to become the Prime Minister’s personal legal consultant, an unpaid role which gave him access to every ministry.

This role allowed Abela to keep hold of his many government contracts, and while he says he would give up his position at the legal firm, he has revealed that it will still receive government contracts should he become Prime Minister.

6. What do the polls say?

Survey results have been mixed, with Fearne often shown leading the pack by varying degrees of margin. A survey he commissioned himself among Labour Party paid-up members predicted that he could win 68% of the vote, proving to be more popular across all age groups, especially among the older group.

However, Abela has been surging in recent weeks, with a survey among all people who voted for the Labour Party in 2017 giving Abela a slight lead over his rival.

A surprise win could be on the cards, but Fearne is likelier to win the post and be elected Malta’s next Prime Minister.

7. Will a general election take place soon?

For now, it seems like a no. The Labour Party still has two-and-a-half years to serve its term in government, and both Fearne and Abela have said they intend to see out the party’s mandate.

However, with a Prime Minister resigning in disgrace with his office heavily linked to the assassination of a journalist, questions surrounding the government’s legitimacy will continue.

Luckily for the pair, a 40,000 voter gap and an Opposition still in rebuild mode means that they will most likely hang on until 2022.

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