Labour election | Race for deputy leader is between Chris Cardona and Owen Bonnici

Zrinzo Azzopardi eliminated; Bonnici Cardona to face off

The election for Labour’s deputy leader will continue on Saturday, when the delegates will be asked to choose between Economy Minister Chris Cardona and Justice Minister Owen Bonnici.

The race kicked off with three candidates, with Cardona leading the race – but failing to meet the quota – whilst Bonnici and former PL president Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi followed neck and neck until Bonnici emerged with 224 votes whilst Zrinzo Azzopardi (213) lagged behind for just 11 votes.

The quota was set at 375 votes. 763 delegates were eligible to vote to elect the party’s new deputy leader for party affairs, after Konrad Mizzi was asked to step down in the wake of the Panama Papers revelations. 752 delegates cast their vote, marking 98.56% of those eligible. 747 votes were eligible, setting the quota at 375 votes.

Chris Cardona was leading the race with 131 votes after the first five tables. Owen Bonnici got 104 votes whilst Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi obtained 103. By the eighth table, Cardona was clearly in the lead with 216 votes, followed by Bonnici with 164 votes and Zrinzo Azzopardi with 161. The gap between Bonnici and Zrinzo Azzopardi widened by the ninth table, where Bonnici obtained 24 votes whilst Zrinzo Azzopardi registered 17 votes.

By the eleventh and last table, Chris Cardona was at 310 votes, Owen Bonnici got 224 votes while Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi garnered 213 votes.

Video is unavailable at this time.

Delegates were asked to choose between Justice Minister Owen Bonnici, Economy Minister Chris Cardona and former PL president Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi. Both Cardona and Zrinzo Azzopardi are present for the counting of votes.

Observers believe that the race is tight and a runoff can be expected for tomorrow. In the eventuality that a runoff takes place tomorrow, delegates will be asked once again to choose from the two most popular candidates.