political parties in Malta This article lists political parties in Malta. Since World War II, Maltese political culture has developed into a two-party system dominated by the centre-left Labour Party ( mt, Partit Laburista) and the centre-right Nationalist Party ( mt, P ...

centre-left Centre-left politics lean to the left on the left–right political spectrum but are closer to the centre than other left-wing politics. Those on the centre-left believe in working within the established systems to improve social justice. The ...

trade unionists A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

Paul Boffa Sir Paul Boffa, OBE (30 June 1890 – 6 July 1962) was a Maltese prime minister (1947–1950) who took office after self-rule was reinstated by the British colonial authority following the end of World War II.democratic socialism and other

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in so ...

stances until the early 1990s, when it followed the lead of like-minded Western

social-democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote s ...

parties like Britain's

New Labour New Labour was a period in the history of the British Labour Party from the mid to late 1990s until 2010 under the leadership of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. The name dates from a conference slogan first used by the party in 1994, later seen ...

. The party still claims to be democratic-socialist in their party programme. Under the rule of

Joseph Muscat Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020. Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...

, the party shifted to a more

centrist Centrism is a political outlook or position involving acceptance or support of a balance of social equality and a degree of social hierarchy while opposing political changes that would result in a significant shift of society strongly to th ...

position, adopting

Third Way The Third Way is a centrist political position that attempts to reconcile right-wing and left-wing politics by advocating a varying synthesis of centre-right economic policies with centre-left social policies. The Third Way was born f ...

policies. A formerly

Eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek refor ...

party, it claims to hold

pro-European Pro-Europeanism, sometimes called European Unionism, is a political position that favours European integration and membership of the European Union (EU).Krisztina Arató, Petr Kaniok (editors). ''Euroscepticism and European Integration''. Politi ...

stances and is a member of the

Party of European Socialists The Party of European Socialists (PES) is a Social democracy, social democratic and Progressivism, progressive European political party. The PES comprises national-level political parties from all member states of the European Union (EU) plus ...

, and was previously a member of the

Socialist International The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism Democratic socialism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing political philosophy that su ...

until 2014.

Party structure

The party structures are the General Conference, the National Executive, the Leader, and the Deputy Leaders, the Party Congress, the Party Administration, the Parliamentary Group, the Councillors' Section, the District and the Regional Administrations, the Local Committees, and the Branches. The General Conference is largely made up of delegates from the Party's other constituent structures and is the Party's highest organ. The National Executive brings together the Party Administration as well as elected representatives of other constituent structures and co-ordinators. The Party Congress is made up of all members of the Party and elects the Leader and the two Deputy Leaders (one for Party, the other for Parliamentary affairs) and determines the Party's broad policy outlines. The Party Administration is made of the Party Leader, Deputy Leaders, and Party officials. The Parliamentary Group and the Councillors' Section bring together the Party's elected representatives in

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

and local councils. The Party is organised geographically in the local committees (smallest) and district and regional (largest) administrations. Finally, the Branches of the Party include the women's,

youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. Y ...

, senior, and candidates' sections.

Media holdings

Although not formally part of the Party's structures, the PL owns a number of media and communication outlets. The party directly owns the Sunday weekly newspaper ''

Kullħadd ''Kullħadd'' is a Maltese weekly newspaper published by the Labour Party since 1993. The newspaper's name is both the Maltese Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * ...

'' and through its holding company

ONE Productions One Productions Limited, also known as the One Group, is a Maltese mass media and telecommunications company owned by the Labour Party. Its operations include the television station One, radio service One Radio, DAB+ radio service KISS, and ...

the party owns the television station

ONE 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. ...

and radio service

ONE Radio One Radio (stylized as ONE Radio, previously known as Super One Radio) is a radio station in Malta owned by One Productions One Productions Limited, also known as the One Group, is a Maltese mass media and telecommunications company owned by ...

.

History

Foundation, first years, and first government (1921–1949)

The Labour Party was founded as the Chamber of Labour ( it, Camera del Lavoro) in 1921 by one of the union branches affiliated with the Imperial Government Workers Union. Band clubs and other organisations were invited to send delegates to the Party's founding meeting on 15 March 1921, significantly, the 30th anniversary of

Pope Leo XIII Pope Leo XIII ( it, Leone XIII; born Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci; 2 March 1810 – 20 July 1903) was the head of the Catholic Church from 20 February 1878 to his death in July 1903. Living until the age of 93, he was the second-old ...

's ''

Rerum novarum ''Rerum novarum'' (from its incipit, with the direct translation of the Latin meaning "of revolutionary change"), or ''Rights and Duties of Capital and Labor'', is an encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII on 15 May 1891. It is an open letter, pas ...

''. Led by Colonel William Savona, the Party contested the general elections held in 1921 and 1924 under the new Constitution that gave the country a measure of self-government. The Labour-Constitutional alliance won the 1927 general elections, but Labour lost ground, gaining 13.9% of votes, three seats in the Legislative Assembly and no representation in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...

. Strickland became Prime Minister. Labour leader Savona was not elected, and the leadership of the Labour parliamentary group was temporarily entrusted to Colonel

Michael Dundon Dr Michael Dundon (November 12, 1854 – April 5, 1936) was a Maltese politician of Irish birth. He was the 7th surviving child of William and Ellen Dundon, Barnakyle, Patrickswell, County Limerick, Ireland. He was educated at Queen's College, ...

. The Presidency of the Party and leadership of the parliamentary group was taken up by

Paul Boffa Sir Paul Boffa, OBE (30 June 1890 – 6 July 1962) was a Maltese prime minister (1947–1950) who took office after self-rule was reinstated by the British colonial authority following the end of World War II. Labour gained nine seats out of ten in the elections held during November 1945, in which, contrarily to previous elections, all men over twenty-one years of age were entitled to vote. The Party's electoral programme, for the first time in Labour's history, did not make any reference to religion. Boffa's Government was supported by the General Workers' Union, and it carried out a number of reforms, such as the abolition of the Senate, the abolition of plural votes, as well as the introduction of

women A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...

's right to vote. However, Labour deputies resigned from their posts in July 1946 due to mass redundancies at the Dockyards. In the meantime, the MacMichael Constitution''' had been introduced, granting self-government to the

Maltese Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * Maltese culture * Maltese language, the Semitic language spoken by Maltese people * Maltese people, people from Malta or of Malte ...

. Labour's participation in the subsequent October 1947 elections was once again supported by the General Workers' Union. The Party won 59.9% of the vote and twenty-four seats out of the possible forty within the Legislative Assembly.

Paul Boffa Sir Paul Boffa, OBE (30 June 1890 – 6 July 1962) was a Maltese prime minister (1947–1950) who took office after self-rule was reinstated by the British colonial authority following the end of World War II.Dom Mintoff Dominic Mintoff, ( mt, Duminku Mintoff, ; often called ''il-Perit'', "the Architect"; 6 August 1916 – 20 August 2012) was a Maltese Socialist politician, architect, and civil engineer who was leader of the Labour Party from 1949 to 198 ...

became Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Reconstruction. The Labour Government introduced Income Tax and Social Services for the first time in

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

.

Re-founding and return to government (1949–1958)

The Labour Party was re-founded in 1949 as a successor to the Labour Party founded in 1921.

Paul Boffa Sir Paul Boffa, OBE (30 June 1890 – 6 July 1962) was a Maltese prime minister (1947–1950) who took office after self-rule was reinstated by the British colonial authority following the end of World War II.Dom Mintoff Dominic Mintoff, ( mt, Duminku Mintoff, ; often called ''il-Perit'', "the Architect"; 6 August 1916 – 20 August 2012) was a Maltese Socialist politician, architect, and civil engineer who was leader of the Labour Party from 1949 to 198 ...

which had led to a series of cabinet crises. Boffa formed the

Malta Workers Party The Malta Workers Party ( mt, Partit tal-Ħaddiema, MWP) was a political party in Malta. History The party was established in 1949 by Paul Boffa after he resigned as leader of the Labour Party following a motion of no confidence.Vincent E McHal ...

(MWP) while Mintoff re-organized the Labour Party as the Malta Labour Party. It has also adopted ''

The Internationale "The Internationale" (french: "L'Internationale", italic=no, ) is an international anthem used by various communist and socialist groups; currently, it serves as the official anthem of the Communist Party of China. It has been a standard of ...

'' as one of its anthems. The Malta Labour Party contested its first elections for the Malta Legislative Assembly the following year. The old Labour vote was split equally between the MLP and the MWP, giving them eleven members each. This allowed the Nationalist Party (PN) to have a slight edge in the formation of a government, which it did in coalition with the MWP. The government did not last long. Two other elections were held in 1951 and 1953 (the last time a coalition governed in Malta) which both saw short-lived PN-MWP coalitions and the decline in the share of votes to the MWP with increasing support for the Labour Party. The MWP eventually disintegrated and the MLP formed a government for the first time in 1955. This

legislature A legislature is an deliberative assembly, assembly with the authority to make laws for a Polity, political entity such as a Sovereign state, country or city. They are often contrasted with the Executive (government), executive and Judiciary, ...

was dominated by the issue of

integration Integration may refer to: Biology * Multisensory integration * Path integration * Pre-integration complex, viral genetic material used to insert a viral genome into a host genome *DNA integration, by means of site-specific recombinase technolo ...

with the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The party, which started its life as an anti-colonial party with the slogan "Integration or self-determination" was now inclined towards the first part of the formula. A

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of ...

was held in 1956 but given the number of abstentions and massive opposition by the Nationalist Party and the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, the result was inconclusive. This, together with a number of dismissals at the naval dockyard led to Mintoff's resignation and his call for massive protests in April 1958.

Opposition (1958–1971)

The Governor re-established direct colonial government which lasted until 1962. In the meantime, the Malta Labour Party's connections with

Third World The term "Third World" arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the Nor ...

Independentist and

Socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

movements set it on a collision course with the Maltese Catholic Church, which the Party perceived as being pro-British and the cause of the failure of the Integration project. This led to the party leadership being interdicted from 1961 to 1964, when reading, advertising and distributing Party newspapers was deemed a

mortal sin A mortal sin ( la, peccatum mortale), in Catholic theology, is a gravely sinful act which can lead to Hell in Christianity#Roman_Catholicism, damnation if a person does not repent of the sin before death. A sin is considered to be "mortal" wh ...

. In the 1962 elections, this led to the defeat of the Party at the polls as well as a split with the creation of the Christian Workers' Party. Peace with the Church would not be made until 1969 by which time the Christian Workers' Party had disintegrated. The MLP participated in

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the s ...

talks but disagreed with what was offered, causing them to not participate in the Independence celebrations when independence was actually achieved in 1964. The party made strong gains in the

1966 elections The following elections occurred in 1966. * 1966 Fianna Fáil leadership election * 1966 Finnish parliamentary election * 1966 Gambian general election * 1966 Guatemalan general election * 1966 Maltese general election * 1966 Salvadoran legisla ...

which, however, were not enough to see it in office. An unimportant split occurred in 1969 when the

Communist Party of Malta Communist Party of Malta ( mt, Partit Komunista Malti) is a communist party in Malta. PKM was founded in 1969 at a secret congress in the town of Gwardamangia, following the departure from the Malta Labour Party of a group of left-wing militants ...

was founded. This split happened as a result of the truce between the Malta Labour Party and local Catholic authorities. The Communist Party has since only contested the 1987 elections.

Post-independence Mintoff governments (1971–1984)

Labour won the 1971 general election and immediately set out to re-negotiate the post-Independence

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distin ...

and financial agreements with the United Kingdom. The government also undertook socialist-style

nationalization Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to priv ...

programmes, import substitution schemes, and the expansion of the

public sector The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, in ...

and the

welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal opportunity, equitab ...

. Employment laws were revised with gender equality being introduced in salary pay. In the case of civil law, civil (non-religious) marriage was introduced and homosexuality and adultery were decriminalised. Through a package of constitutional reforms agreed to with the opposition party, Malta became a republic in 1974. The Labour Party was confirmed in office in the

1976 elections The following elections occurred in the year 1976. Africa * 1976–1977 Guinea-Bissau legislative election * 1976 Malawian general election * 1976 Mauritanian presidential election * 1976 Tiris El Gharbiya parliamentary by-election (Mauritani ...

. In 1981 the Party managed to hold on to a parliamentary majority, even though the opposition Nationalist Party managed an absolute majority of more than 4000 votes. A serious political crisis ensued when Nationalist

MPs MPS, M.P.S., MPs, or mps may refer to: Science and technology * Mucopolysaccharidosis, genetic lysosomal storage disorder * Mononuclear phagocyte system, cells in mammalian biology * Myofascial pain syndrome * Metallopanstimulin * Potassium perox ...

refused to accept the electoral result and also refused to take their seats in parliament for the first years of the legislature. Premier

Dom Mintoff Dominic Mintoff, ( mt, Duminku Mintoff, ; often called ''il-Perit'', "the Architect"; 6 August 1916 – 20 August 2012) was a Maltese Socialist politician, architect, and civil engineer who was leader of the Labour Party from 1949 to 198 ...

called this action "perverse" but it was not an uncommon one in any parliamentary democracy with disputed election results. He proposed to his parliamentary group that fresh elections be held, but most members of his Parliamentary group rejected his proposal. Mintoff, who had been considering vacating the party leadership position even before the elections, voluntarily resigned as Prime Minister and Party leader in 1984 (although he retained his parliamentary seat). A Party General Conference in that same year appointed

Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, (17 July 19335 November 2022) was a Maltese politician who served as Prime Minister of Malta from December 1984 to May 1987.

who acted uncontested as party leader.

Post-Mintoff era (1984–1992)

The Mifsud Bonnici years were characterised by political tensions and violence. The deadlock was broken when constitutional amendments were made voted and made effective in January 1987 which guaranteed that the party with an absolute majority of votes would be given a majority of parliamentary seats in order to govern. This paved the way for the return of the Nationalist Party to government later that year. The Labour Party performed very badly in the following election in 1992, losing by nearly 13,000 votes. Mifsud Bonnici resigned due to deteriorating health and on 26 March, Labour elected

Alfred Sant Alfred Sant, (born 28 February 1948 in Sliema, tas-Sliema) is a Malta, Maltese politician and a novelist. He led the Labour Party (Malta), Labour Party from 1992 to 2008 and served as Prime Minister of Malta between 1996 and 1998 and as Leade ...

as the new leader.

Sant leadership, modernisation, and challenges (1992–2008)

Sant who won the election for party leader, and then modernized the party, secured a victory at the polls in 1996. Under Sant's leadership the party made several changes. The party opened the new Labour Party Headquarters in Hamrun instead of the old Macina in Cottonera. The party also made giant steps in the media by being the first Maltese political party to own its radio and television stations. Sant managed to win comfortably the 1996 elections held on 26 October by over 8,000 votes on the Nationalist Party. The 1987 constitutional amendments, which secured the necessary additional seats, had to be used for the second time, having been used for the same time in 1987. This same amendment had to be used a third time in 2008. However, trouble was brewing. Mintoff, for reasons known to him alone (within the MLP), started creating problems in Parliament for the one-seat Labour parliamentary majority. In the summer of 1998, Labour lost a division vote on the proposed

Cottonera The Three Cities ( mt, It-Tlett Ibliet) is a collective description of the three fortified cities of Vittoriosa, Senglea and Cospicua in Malta. The oldest of the Three Cities is Vittoriosa, which has existed since prior to the Middle Ages. Th ...

waterfront project because of Mintoff's renegation on his parliamentary group. This was considered by Prime Minister Sant as a vote of no confidence in his government and informed the then-President of the Republic that he no longer held a parliamentary majority as a result. The President had on various occasions asked Prime Minister

Alfred Sant Alfred Sant, (born 28 February 1948 in Sliema, tas-Sliema) is a Malta, Maltese politician and a novelist. He led the Labour Party (Malta), Labour Party from 1992 to 2008 and served as Prime Minister of Malta between 1996 and 1998 and as Leade ...

to try to find a solution for the political crisis created, but when all attempts proved futile, he had no other option but to accept Sant and his government's resignation and a call for early elections, which were held on 5 September 1998. The Labour Party was defeated with a wide 13,000 vote margin. Back in opposition, the party campaigned unsuccessfully against EU membership, and the 'NO' camp lost the referendum for the ascension of Malta in the European Union on 8 March (although Sant claimed victory) and was again defeated in the general election a month later on 14 April 2003, once more with a 12,000 vote margin. Sant resigned but stood again for party leader, where he was re-elected with more than 65% of the votes. In June 2004 the party succeeded in obtaining a relative majority of votes in the elections held to elect the first five Maltese MEPs for the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adop ...

. The party elected 3 of his candidates:

Joseph Muscat Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020. Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...

(later replaced by

Glenn Bedingfield Glenn Bedingfield (born 15 November 1974, Pietà, Malta) is a Member of the Parliament of Malta and Government Whip. Career Bedingfield was one of the first journalists to join the newly set up Labour Party owned Super One Radio and Super One ...

),

John Attard Montalto John Attard Montalto (born 7 February 1953) is a Maltese politician who was a Member of the European Parliament from 2004 until 2014. He is a member of the Labour Party, which is part of the Party of European Socialists. He served in the gover ...

and

Louis Grech Louis Grech (born 22 March 1947) is a Maltese politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Malta, as well as Minister of European Affairs. He also served as Deputy Leader for Parliamentary Affairs of the Labour Party. He currently serves ...

. In 2008 the Labour Party lost for the third consecutive time in the 2008 general elections, obtaining 48.79% share of the vote and losing the election to the Nationalist Party by just 1,580 votes or 0.5%. Following the loss of the election, Sant resigned as Labour Party leader on 10 March 2008.

Muscat leadership (2008–2020)

The first round of the election of the new leader were held on 5 June 2008. Five members contested this election as candidates:

George Abela George Abela, (born 22 April 1948) is a Malta, Maltese politician who was the eighth president of Malta from April 2009 to April 2014. Early life Abela was born in Qormi, Malta, to George and Ludgarda (née Debono) Abela. He attended the local ...

(a former Deputy Leader),

Evarist Bartolo Evarist Bartolo (born 14 October 1952) is a Maltese politician affiliated with the Labour Party and formerly the Minister for European & Foreign Affairs and the Minister for Education & Employment. Family Bartolo was born on 14 October 1952 ...

(a frontbench MP and ex-Minister),

Marie Louise Coleiro Preca Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, (born 7 December 1958) is a Maltese politician who served as President of Malta from 2014 to 2019. She has been president of Eurochild since 2019. Previously, as a member of the Labour Party, Coleiro Preca was a ...

(a frontbench MP and former Secretary-General of the Party), Michael Falzon (an MP and Deputy Leader of the Party) and

Joseph Muscat Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020. Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...

(an MEP). In the first round neither candidate obtained 50%+1 the majority of the votes. So a run up election had to be held on 6 June between the top two candidates who obtained the most votes,

George Abela George Abela, (born 22 April 1948) is a Malta, Maltese politician who was the eighth president of Malta from April 2009 to April 2014. Early life Abela was born in Qormi, Malta, to George and Ludgarda (née Debono) Abela. He attended the local ...

and

Joseph Muscat Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020. Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...

. Muscat was elected Labour Party leader, gathering 66.36% of the total votes. He was co-opted in Parliament and appointed

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

on 1 October. During an Extraordinary General Conference, held in November 2008, it was decided that the party's official name would be

Partit Laburista The Labour Party ( mt, Partit Laburista, PL), formerly known as the Malta Labour Party ( mt, Partit tal-Ħaddiema, MLP), is one of the two major political parties in Malta, along with the Nationalist Party. It sits on the centre-left of the po ...

instead of its former English name, the Malta Labour Party. The previous emblem was changed, although the symbol of the torch was retained. In June 2009, the party garnered 55 percent of the first preference votes in the election for the European Parliament, electing 3 MEPs who sit with the

Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) is the political group in the European Parliament of the Party of European Socialists (PES). The Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats was officially founded as a Socialist ...

. This result led to Labour a fourth MEP when the Treaty of Lisbon came into effect and the number of seats allocated to Malta increased from five to six. Muscat managed to win comfortably the 2013 elections held on 9 March by over 35,000 votes on the Nationalist Party. The Labour Party won a massive 55% of the votes. In the 2014 MEP elections, the Labour Party retained a majority of 34,000 votes (53%), but lost its fourth seat to the Nationalist Party candidate Therese Comodini Cachia. In 2015, the party was delisted from the

Socialist International The Socialist International (SI) is a political international or worldwide organisation of political parties which seek to establish democratic socialism Democratic socialism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing political philosophy that su ...

for not paying membership fees. In 2017, Joseph Muscat was re-elected during the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

, with Labour appearing to win with a clear landslide victory for the second consecutive time, merely an hour after the vote counting commenced. Under Muscat's leadership Malta's national deficit was eliminated, unemployment decreased to historic lows, and an unprecedented period of economic growth occurred. However, he was criticised by figures on both sides of the political spectrum, accused of political opportunism, broken promises on

meritocracy Meritocracy (''merit'', from Latin , and ''-cracy'', from Ancient Greek 'strength, power') is the notion of a political system in which economic goods and/or political power are vested in individual people based on talent, effort, and achie ...

and the environment, as well as corruption allegations. On 1 December 2019, Muscat announced his resignation, to take effect after 12 January 2020, due to the

2019 Maltese protests Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

caused by the murder of anti-corruption journalist and government critic

Daphne Caruana Galizia Daphne Anne Caruana Galizia (; 26 August 1964 – 16 October 2017) was a Maltese writer, journalist, blogger and anti-corruption activist, who reported on political events in Malta. In particular, she focused on investigative journalism, repor ...

. Muscat was accused of impeding the investigation.

Robert Abela Robert Abela (born 7 December 1977) is a Maltese lawyer and politician who has served as prime minister of Malta and leader of Labour Party since 2020. The son of former President George Abela, he was elected to Parliament in 2017. Abela was ...

was elected to replace him, promising continuity with previous policies pursued by the party.

Abela leadership (2020–present)

As the party held a parliamentary majority at the time of Muscat's resignation,

Robert Abela Robert Abela (born 7 December 1977) is a Maltese lawyer and politician who has served as prime minister of Malta and leader of Labour Party since 2020. The son of former President George Abela, he was elected to Parliament in 2017. Abela was ...

would become Prime Minister immediately after, on 13 January 2020. He was recognized as the "continuity" candidate instead of

Chris Fearne Christopher Fearne (born 12 March 1963) is a Maltese physician and politician. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health in April 2014 and Minister for Health since April 2016. In July 2017, the Labour Party elected him as Deputy Lead ...

, emphasizing stability, unity and normality, as opposed to the bolder changes advocated by Fearne. Abela is considered to be aligned to traditional Labour's values, such as social housing and free medicines for the elderly. In March 2020, Malta registered its first COVID-19 case. Abela was at first reluctant to close the

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...

, retail outlets and the

schools A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compul ...

, but felt compelled to do so a few days later as public pressure mounted. In April 2020, Prime Minister Abela called for 'national unity' on TVM, the country's national broadcasting television. This has been criticized for being partisan. In November 2020, Abela stated "that the party will continue to reinvent itself with the introduction of more young people and women at the centre of its decision-making process." On 18 February 2021, Abela announced plans to introduce a law that would end police arrests for those possessing a small amount of cannabis and plants for personal use. This bill was passed in December 2021, and Malta became the first country in the European Union to legalise cannabis. Abela's leadership was criticised with the number of co-options that have been put into place since his appointment, being deemed as undemocratic.

Electoral history

House of Representatives

European Parliament

Party leadership

Leaders of the Labour Party

: ''See

List of Malta Labour Party leaders The post of Leader of the Labour Party (Malta), Labour Party was created in 1928. Before this (1921–28) the post was known as President of the Camera del Lavoro (Labour Party). {, class="sortable wikitable" ! ! ! Name ! Entered office ! Left o ...

''

Deputy leaders of the Labour Party in the Maltese House of Representatives since 1920

*

P. Bugelli P. is an abbreviation or acronym that may refer to: * Page (paper), where the abbreviation comes from Latin ''pagina'' * Paris Herbarium, at the ''Muséum national d'histoire naturelle'' * ''Pani'' (Polish), translating as Mrs. * The ''Pacific Repo ...

1920–1925 *

Michael Dundon Dr Michael Dundon (November 12, 1854 – April 5, 1936) was a Maltese politician of Irish birth. He was the 7th surviving child of William and Ellen Dundon, Barnakyle, Patrickswell, County Limerick, Ireland. He was educated at Queen's College, ...

1925–1929 * 1929–1947 *

Dom Mintoff Dominic Mintoff, ( mt, Duminku Mintoff, ; often called ''il-Perit'', "the Architect"; 6 August 1916 – 20 August 2012) was a Maltese Socialist politician, architect, and civil engineer who was leader of the Labour Party from 1949 to 198 ...

1947–1949 * Joseph Flores 1949–1955 * Ġużè Ellul Mercer 1955–1961 *

Anton Buttigieg Anton Buttigieg, ( mt, Anton Buttiġieġ ; 19 February 1912 – 5 May 1983) was a Maltese political figure and poet. He served as the second president of Malta from 1976 until 1981. Early life Anton Buttigieg was born in Qala, Gozo, on 19 ...

1961–1976 *

Agatha Barbara Agatha Barbara, (11 March 1923 – 4 February 2002) was a Maltese politician, having served as a Labour Member of Parliament and Minister. She was the first woman to serve as president of Malta, and remains the longest-serving woman Member ...

1976–1981 *

Wistin Abela Wistin Abela (19 October 1933 – 20 January 2014) was a Maltese politician. He was the Finance Minister from 1983 to 1987, and the Deputy Prime Minister of Malta from 1981 to 1983. Biography Wistin Abela was involved in the Labour party since ...

1981–1982 *

Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, (17 July 19335 November 2022) was a Maltese politician who served as Prime Minister of Malta from December 1984 to May 1987.

1982–1984 *

Guze Cassar Sanguine () is a stain, or non-standard tincture in heraldry, of a blood-red colour. In the past it was sometimes taken to be equivalent to murrey, but they are now considered two distinct tinctures. It is a darker red, the colour of arterial blood ...

1984–1987 * Joseph Brincat 1987–1992 *

George William Vella George William Vella (born 24 April 1942) is a Maltese politician who has served as president of Malta since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, he previously served as deputy prime minister of Malta and foreign affairs minister from 1996 to 1 ...

1992–2003 * Charles Mangion 2003–2008 *

Angelo Farrugia Angelo "Anġlu" Farrugia (born 29 December 1955) is a Maltese politician and the current Speaker of the House of Representatives of Malta. Previously he served Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, a Member of Parliament and Shadow Minister for wor ...

2008–2012 *

Louis Grech Louis Grech (born 22 March 1947) is a Maltese politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Malta, as well as Minister of European Affairs. He also served as Deputy Leader for Parliamentary Affairs of the Labour Party. He currently serves ...

2012–2017 *

Chris Fearne Christopher Fearne (born 12 March 1963) is a Maltese physician and politician. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health in April 2014 and Minister for Health since April 2016. In July 2017, the Labour Party elected him as Deputy Lead ...

2017–present

Deputy leaders of the Labour Party Affairs since 1976

* Joseph Brincat 1976–1980 *

Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, (17 July 19335 November 2022) was a Maltese politician who served as Prime Minister of Malta from December 1984 to May 1987.

1980–1983 *

Guze Cassar Sanguine () is a stain, or non-standard tincture in heraldry, of a blood-red colour. In the past it was sometimes taken to be equivalent to murrey, but they are now considered two distinct tinctures. It is a darker red, the colour of arterial blood ...

1983-1987 *

Joe Debono Grech Joe Debono Grech (born 17 September 1939) was a Maltese politician. He was a Member of Parliament in the House of Representatives of Malta. Political life Joseph Debono Grech started off in the Labour Party in 1959 both as a Secretary and a ...

1987–1992 *

George Abela George Abela, (born 22 April 1948) is a Malta, Maltese politician who was the eighth president of Malta from April 2009 to April 2014. Early life Abela was born in Qormi, Malta, to George and Ludgarda (née Debono) Abela. He attended the local ...

1992–1998 * Joseph Brincat 1998–2003 * Michael Falzon 2003–2008 *

Toni Abela Toni Abela (born July 2, 1957) is a Maltese politician who was elected as Deputy Leader (Party Affairs) of the Malta Labour Party in June 2008. A lawyer by profession, he co-drafted Malta's Whistle Blower Act, Party Financing Act and the law tha ...

2008–2016 *

Konrad Mizzi Konrad Mizzi (born 4 November 1977) is a disgraced Maltese politician and served as a Member of Parliament until 2022. He served as Minister for Energy and the Conservation of Water between 2013 and 2014, Minister for Energy and Health from 201 ...

2016 *

Chris Cardona Christian Cardona (born 1972) is a Maltese former politician and lawyer. He was a Member of Parliament for the Maltese Labour Party and was elected Deputy Leader for Party Affairs in 2016. He served as Malta's Minister for the Economy, Investme ...

2016–2020 *

Daniel Jose Micallef Daniel is a masculine given name and a surname of Hebrew origin. It means "God is my judge"Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 68. (cf. Gabriel—"God is my strength"), ...

2020 – present

References

External links

* {{Authority control Political parties in Malta Social democratic parties Social democratic parties in Europe Party of European Socialists member parties Political parties established in 1921 Socialism in Malta 1921 establishments in Malta Labour parties Parties represented in the European Parliament Pro-European political parties in Malta

Party structure

Media holdings

History

Foundation, first years, and first government (1921–1949)

Re-founding and return to government (1949–1958)

Opposition (1958–1971)

Post-independence Mintoff governments (1971–1984)

Post-Mintoff era (1984–1992)

Sant leadership, modernisation, and challenges (1992–2008)

Muscat leadership (2008–2020)

Abela leadership (2020–present)

Electoral history

House of Representatives

European Parliament

Party leadership

Leaders of the Labour Party

Deputy leaders of the Labour Party in the Maltese House of Representatives since 1920

Deputy leaders of the Labour Party Affairs since 1976

See also

References

External links