Malta election underway as Labour seeks to retain power

Polling stations have opened across Malta as the country votes in a snap parliamentary election that will decide the composition of the EU’s smallest legislature.

More than 341,000 eligible voters are casting ballots on Saturday (May 30), between 7.00 am and 10.00 pm, with turnout closely watched after a fast-tracked campaign triggered by Prime Minister Robert Abela, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

Abela’s governing centre-left Labour Party (MLP) enters polling day ahead in opinion surveys, with Alex Borg’s conservative Nationalist Party (PN) trailing but still within striking distance in key constituencies.

The contest is expected to hinge on voter confidence in economic management and concerns over regional instability.

Voting is proceeding across the island nation under heightened political attention, as both main parties press final appeals to undecided voters. Labour has campaigned on continuity and stability, while the Nationalists have focused on governance reforms and cost-of-living pressures.

Abela called the election at the end of April in a televised address, moving the vote forward from its original timetable next year.

He argued that shifting geopolitical tensions linked to the war in Iran and mounting energy concerns required a renewed mandate to steer the country through potential economic disruption.

By Aghakazim Guliyev