ADPD’s Sandra Gauci Got More Votes Than PL MP Who Got Elected Via Gender Quota
With gender quotas limited to the two major parties, ADPD’s Sandra Gauci was left in the awkward position of being left out in the cold while a candidate who received fewer votes than her ended up in Parliament.
Gauci had received 515 votes by the time she was knocked out of the race on the 12th district, more than PL’s Davina Sammut Hili, the mayor of Floriana, who received 465.
This means that Gauci would have been elected to Parliament via gender quota at Sammut Hili’s expense had she contested the election with PL.
As it stands though, Sammut Hili will serve as an MP while Gauci will not, a fact that will surely be utilised by ADPD in a constitutional court case arguing that the electoral system is discriminatory against third parties.
“It is a system created to keep the same teams in power,” Gauci told Lovin Malta. “This is not how democracy works and is just a crutch which women needed because they lack the ability, or so whoever came up with this idea views us.”
“As some women politicians have shown you do get elected on merit. This is a piloted fake democracy where different voices are left out. On purpose. Whatever matters the two parties fail to address or ignore will continue to be ignored.”
Besides Sammut Hili, the PL candidates who have benefitted from the gender quotas are Alicia Bugeja Said, Cressida Galea, Abigail Camilleri, Amanda Spiteri Grech and Naomi Cachia.
From the PN’s side, the MPs elected via quota are Janice Chetcuti, Paula Mifsud Bonnici, Julie Zahra, Bernice Bonello, Rebekah Cilia, Claudette Buttigieg, and Eve Borg Bonello.
Independent candidate Arnold Cassola has flagged Gauci’s exclusion from Parliament as a sign the gender quota system is anti-democratic.
“Why do all proportionality mechanisms introduced by the PL and PN always ignore the will of non PL and PN voters?” he asked. “If introduced, truly democratic proportionality mechanisms should defend the rights of all voters. The crux of the issue is that it is not true that the law is giving women representation in parliament according to the will of the voters.”
“This is the state of democracy in Malta. Shameful.”
Cover photo: Left: Sandra Gauci, Right: Davina Sammut Hili
Do you thnk the gender quota system is unfair to third parties?
READ NEXT: I Won’t Stop Till PN Is In Power, Eve Borg Bonello Says After Election To Parliament
