Malta’s voters went to the polls on Saturday to elect a new parliament.
The Republic of Malta is the smallest and most densely populated country in the European Union.
More than 341,000 residents of the island nation are eligible to vote.
Voting will take place between 7am (5am UTC) and 10pm (8pm UTC).
Preliminary results are expected by Sunday afternoon.
What do we know about the election?
Opinion polls have put Prime Minister Robert Abela’s ruling centre-left Labor Party (MLP) ahead in the race, which could pave the way for a record fourth consecutive term for a Labor government.
Abela’s primary opponent is Nationalist Party (PN) candidate Alex Borg.
Borg is a 30-year-old lawyer and former “Mr. World Malta” beauty pageant titleholder. If he wins, he will be the youngest leader of the country.
Energy bill, a hotly debated topic
The elections were originally scheduled to be held early next year, but Abela called for immediate voting in a televised address last month, citing global political concerns generated by Iran as the reason.
The country imports most of its energy and the bill has been a hotly debated topic this election season.
Abela’s current administration says it has allocated an additional €250 million ($290 million) for subsidies to cushion the blow from the crisis in the Middle East, on top of the €150 million already budgeted for 2026.
Abela and Borg both held final-stretch rallies on Thursday.
Abela – who has campaigned on strengthening the economy while promising efficiency and stability – told his supporters he would be “a captain as strong as steel.”
Meanwhile, Borg criticized the “chaos” in the country, ranging from a crisis-hit health care system to blackouts in the scorching heat.
Edited by: Srinivas Majumdaru
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