Malta votes to elect its MEPs

Voters in Malta will today join millions across the EU to elect their members of the European Parliament.

There are 332,888 people with the right to vote after 38,737 voting documents remained uncollected by Thursday’s deadline.

Polling will take place in schools across the island. Polling stations open at 7am and will close at 10pm.

To be able to vote, electors have to take the voting document with them to the polling booth.

Voters will also be choosing local councillors to run the 68 localities in Malta and Gozo.

These elections also come with a series of firsts: This is the first time that local elections are being held in all localities at one go; this is the first time that 16-year-olds will be voting in the European Parliament election; this is the first time that electronic vote counting will take place.

The elections come on the back of a four-week campaign that saw political leaders cross swords on various issues.

The first indications of how political parties scored are expected on Sunday at around 9.30am but the six candidates elected to the European Parliament will be known on Sunday night.

Vote counting will take place at the Naxxar counting hall and a new electronic system is expected to deliver speedier results. MaltaToday will be providing live coverage from the counting hall tomorrow.

The EP election is being contested by 41 candidates. The Labour Party, the Nationalist Party, Alternattiva Demokratika, the Democratic Party, Imperium Europa, Maltese Patriots Movement, Alleanza Bidla and Brain Not Ego are contesting as parties. There are also several independent candidates who are on the ballot sheet.

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