[WATCH] Updated | Labour holds on to Birkirkara with higher majority

Labour has retained Birkirkara, a hotly-contested locality, as PL strengthened its majority over last time's showing.

Joanne Debono Grech has kept her seat in this locality as she garnered the highest number of votes. She told MaltaToday in a brief interview after results were announced that Birkirkara belongs to everyone. 

"We want Birkirkara to be the best in Malta. It's important that we carry on as we left off," she said. 

In the previous election, Birkirkara was won by a slimmer majority with just 50.41% of the votes. This locality, with the largest population in the country, has always been hotly-contested as it swung from PN to PL numerous times over the years. 

Though a previous PN Mayor of this locality, returning candidate Michael Fenech Adami, while elected councillor, is not the highest scoring PN candidate in Birkirkara and has therefore missed out on minority leadership. 

He was upended by Justin Schembri.