The reshuffle and district dynamics

A prime minister makes several considerations when deciding on who should form part of Cabinet and one of these is the geographical distribution of ministers.  

In an electoral system where, what counts is the strength of politicians on the individual districts, geographical distribution is not something to be underestimated. 

MaltaToday takes a look at the Cabinet’s geographical makeup following Prime Minister Robert Abela’s latest reshuffle. 

The First District is the only one not represented in Cabinet by a minister following Aaron Farrugia’s removal from the executive. 

The district which has often served as a barometer of the national mood includes Ħamrun, Pieta and Valletta. It is currently represented in Cabinet by two parliamentary secretaries - district heavyweight Keith Tanti Azzopardi, who is responsible for youths and Andy Ellul, who was however elected on the Third District. 

Ellul was retained as parliamentary secretary for social dialogue, however, has been shifted from the Office of the Prime Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister’s office with the added responsibility of EU funds. This move could eventually see Ellul being elevated to minister with the same responsibilities when Fearne resigns from government to become European Commissioner. 

Left in the cold in the latest reshuffle along with Farrugia is another district strongman - Deo Debattista, who obtained 2,290 first count votes. 

The 11th District, which includes Mosta and where the PN has retained a majority of votes, is another district with a low representation in Cabinet. The district only has one minister - Miriam Dalli, who was also elected from the 5th District - and not a single parliamentary secretary. 

Only five Labour candidates had contested this district in 2022. These included Alex Muscat, a former parliamentary secretary under Muscat, who despite getting 2,258 first count votes was left out in the cold in the latest reshuffle. 

In contrast, the Labour leaning 4th, 5th and 6th districts are each currently represented by five Cabinet members. 

Chris Bonett’s elevation from parliamentary secretary for EU funds to transport minister puts him in a better position to compete for Chris Fearne’s votes on the 4th District once the latter departs to Brussels. 

And Andy Ellul could be in the running for Fearne’s votes on the 3rd District if he is eventually promoted to minister later this year. 

The electorally strategic Gozo district is still represented by a strong contingent of three ministers – Clint Camilleri, Anton Refalo and Jo Etienne Abela. 

Abela has now gained greater visibility with an expanded portfolio that includes health, while Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri has taken up a greater national profile with the addition of the controversial planning portfolio. As a Gozitan architect, Camilleri will be torn between constituents who benefit from the property boom and increased discontent on the impact of over development in Gozo. 

The 2nd District, a historical deep red district, which includes the Cottonera stronghold, has also seen its representation in the Cabinet increase from three to four with the addition of Glenn Bedingfield as parliamentary secretary for public cleansing. 

This move may go some way in addressing disgruntlement in a district which over the past years has seen the loss of Cabinet members like Joe Mizzi who was not elected in 2022, and Chris Agius who was not appointed to Cabinet after the last general election. 

Cabinet members 

District 1 

Ministers: 0 Parliamentary secretaries: 2 

Total Cabinet members: 2  

Ministers: None 

Parliamentary secretaries: Keith Tanti Azzopardi (3,774 votes); Andy Ellul (346 votes) 

District 2 

Ministers: 2 Parliamentary Secretaries: 2 

Total Cabinet members: 4 

Ministers: Clyde Caruana (490); Byron Camilleri (338) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Glenn Bedingfield (337); Alison Zerafa Civelli (386) 

District 3 

Ministers: 2 Parliamentary secretaries: 2 

Total Cabinet members: 4 

Ministers: Chris Fearne (5,870); Owen Bonnici (2,525) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Andy Ellul (1,873); Alicia Bugeja Said (1,261) 

District 4 

Ministers: 4 Parliamentary secretaries: 1 

Total Cabinet members: 5 

Ministers: Chris Fearne (6,770); Byron Camilleri (2,835); Jonathan Attard (1,780); Chris Bonett (1,092) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Glenn Bedingfield (384) 

District 5 

Ministers: 4 Parliamentary secretaries: 1 

Total Cabinet members: 5 

Ministers: Owen Bonnici (1,127); Miriam Dalli (1,122); Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi (1,021); Julia Farrugia Portelli (913) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Omar Farrugia (448) 

District 6 

Ministers: 3 Parliamentary secretaries: 2 

Total Cabinet members: 5 

Ministers: Silvio Schembri (4,287); Roderick Galdes (4,035); Ian Borg (2,050) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Malcolm Paul Agius Galea (868); Omar Farrugia (197) 

District 7 

Ministers: 3 Parliamentary secretaries: 2 

Total Cabinet members: 5 

Ministers: Ian Borg (5,025); Silvio Schembri (2,489); Julia Farrugia Portelli (1,358) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Alicia Borg Said (748); Malcolm Paul Agius Galea (1,479) 

District 8 

Ministers: 4 Parliamentary secretaries: 0 

Total Cabinet members: 4 

Ministers: Clyde Caruana (2,825); Clayton Bartolo (1,292); Roderick Galdes (1,247); Chris Bonett (101) 

Parliamentary secretaries: None 

District 9 

Ministers: 2 Parliamentary secretaries: 2 

Total Cabinet members: 4 

Ministers: Clifton Grima (4,415); Michael Falzon (2,803) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Rebecca Buttigieg (824); Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi (264) 

District 10 

Ministers: 3 Parliamentary secretaries: 1 

Total Cabinet members: 4 

Ministers: Michael Falzon (2,662); Clifton Grima (2,616); Jo Etienne Abela (547) 

Parliamentary secretaries: Rebecca Buttigieg (889) 

District 11 

Ministers: 1 Parliamentary secretaries: 0 

Total Cabinet members: 1 

Ministers: Miriam Dalli (3,539) 

Parliamentary secretaries: None 

District 12 

Ministers: 2 Parliamentary secretaries: 0 

Total Cabinet members: 2 

Ministers: Clayton Bartolo (2,863); Jonathan Attard (1,297) 

Parliamentary secretaries: None 

District 13 

Ministers: 3 Parliamentary secretaries: 0 

Total Cabinet members: 3 

Ministers: Clint Camilleri (6,458); Anton Refalo (5,002); Jo Etienne Abela (1,803) 

Parliamentary secretaries: None