Abstract
This chapter provides an insight into the political system in Malta which is based on a near-perfect two-party system with the Nationalist Party and Labour Party competing for power. It delves into Malta’s electoral system which is based on the Single Transferable Vote. This is necessary in order to understand the Maltese political system, as well as the influence of the European Union on party politics, their approach towards the European Union and the way the European Union is used in political campaigns. The chapter argues that the Maltese political system is heavily dependent on clientelism, political patronage, and personal charisma. The chapter explores these characteristics and provides a detailed account of the establishment of the various civil society groups and the way they are now able to challenge the status quo of the main political parties.
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Notes
- 1.
In his autobiography, Fenech Adami (2014) reveals that the partyʼs name did create some problems with its European partners. The PN was invited to join the European Union of Christian Democrats (the party would evolve into the EPP in 1976) in 1960. At the time, a number of Christian Democrat Parties believed that the name showcased the partyʼs support of Nazism and Fascism. However, they quickly learned that the partyʼs name developed from Partito Nazionale to evolve into the popular Partit Nazzjonalista, in 1927 (Fenech Adami, 2014).
- 2.
Still, in the history of the Maltese legislature, a number of MPs resigned from their political groups and sat in the House as independent MPs.
- 3.
In a two-party system, one party will achieve enough electoral support to govern by itself. Furthermore, power is alternated between the same two parties (Cini, 2002).
- 4.
Wikileaks published documents between the United States ambassador Molly Bordonaro and the Prime Minister of Malta Lawrence Gonzi that revealed the difficulty which the latter had in putting together an efficient executive filled with new faces, as requested by the electorate, when the latter kept voting for the same faces (Times of Malta, 2 September 2011).
- 5.
Even though Berlusconiʼs media empire is not a property of his party, a number of ethical questions were still raised in Italy, especially by the centre-left parties. This was due to the potential conflict of interest which existed. In fact, the coalition headed by Berlusconi was accused of introducing a series of laws which were meant to safeguard his media empire.
- 6.
The Today Public Policy Institute, the only independent, non-partisan, and not-for-profit think-tank, closed down after 11 years. This leaves Malta without any single think tank.
- 7.
The case concerned the Nationalist Party. In March 2017, the party was accused of breaching the law as Silvio Debono, one of the main hoteliers in Malta, was asked to finance two salaries of Nationalist officials. The Electoral Commission began to investigate these irregularities with the Nationalist Party declaring that the Commission could not act as the judge, jury, and executioner of the case (Brincat, Times of Malta, October 8, 2018).
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Cachia, J.C. (2023). The Two Sides of Maltese Politics. In: The Europeanisation of Party Politics in Malta. Springer Series in Electoral Politics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-23290-9_3
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