It has just been over two months since the local council elections took place in May. These elections will not only be remembered for the historic result the Labour Party achieved, but also the results achieved by young people, with well over 100 youths getting elected.

Now that some time has passed, Lovin Malta has contacted six of Malta’s new young local councillors, three from each major party, to ask them how their new roles have affected their life and their opinion on youth issues.

And this is what we learned.

1.  Life has changed and has become busier

Trying to get elected is not the only hurdle that a politician faces. Undoubtedly, election period is the most dynamic part of the political experience, but that is just it, it is part of the experience. After getting elected, they have to prove that they are worth the vote.

That is a heavy task in itself, all of the young councillors have said that their lives have been very different prior to being a councillor. Martina Grech, an 18-year-old PL local councillor of Qormi, said that life “changed drastically” since getting elected,

“To be part of a local government is not a piece of cake,” she said “You realize that there are a lot of issues, especially for a city such as Qormi which has an ageing population, bringing about its own challenges .

Justine Palmier, a 25-year-old PN councillor of Floriana, pointed out that life has become much busier than usual and said she had to learn time management skills to be able to balance time between local council related meetings, day to day meet-ups with residents and her full-time job.

Carlos Zarb, a 17-year-old PL councillor from St Paul’s Bay, pointed out that one of the difficulties he has encountered is that “people expect things to be solved immediately and, unfortunately, it is not always possible”.

2. There has to be a balance between their personal life and public life

Many of the young councillors have also said that their new responsibilities mean they also need to need to find a balance between their daily youth life and public life.

Francine Farrugia, a 25-year-old PN councillor from Siggiewi, said that this was the first difficulty she encountered when adjusting to public life.

“This to an extent has also had a toll on the time I spend with my next of kin, especially due to the new meeting schedule,” she said. “Another difficulty I have encountered is that public life does not have the time for your personal emotions, as you must always be available to the public.”

3. People recognise them all the time

One other change they have had to get used to is the fact that people now recognise them when they walk through their localities.

“People tend to recognize you more wherever you are and this leads for one to be more cautious of what he does even in his private life,” said Frederick Aquilina, a 20-year-old PN councillor from Luqa.

Scott Camilleri, a 21-year-old PL councillor from Birżebbuġia, said that while his private life has been lost, he doesn’t mind this because he loves meeting people.

“I see this work, which is something that I love, as a mission or a hobby,” he said. “I have gotten used to this.”

Martina Grech said social media has also posed a challenge, particularly since youths born in the millennial era are used to constantly sharing their lives on the internet.

“You need to be able to draw a line but also keep in mind that we are still young and that it’s okay to express yourself on social media and let the new generation be the beginning of a changed mentality,” she said.

4. Most think people believe in them, despite their young age