Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1116643
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 15 MAY 2019 7 NEWS EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND LOCAL COUNCIL ELECTIONS – 25TH MAY, 2019 Persons who have not yet received their voting document/s The Electoral Commission notifies voters that they may call personally at their Local Police Station to collect their voting document/s by showing their Identity or Residence Card as follows: Saturday 11th until Friday 17th May: 8.00 a.m. until 1.00 p.m. and 3.00 p.m. until 9.00 p.m. Saturday 18th May: 8.00 a.m. until 10.00 p.m. Sunday 19th May: 8.00 a.m. until 1.00 p.m. In the locality of St. Paul's Bay voting documents shall be collected from the Qawra Police Station. In the locality of Marsaskala voting documents shall be collected from St Joachim's Primary School. In the localities of Bormla, Fontana, Għasri, Iklin, Lija, Marsaxlokk, Pembroke and Ta' Xbiex, voting documents shall be collected from the Local Council Office during the same days and hours. NOTICE BY THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION www.electoral.gov.mt LAURA CALLEJA EUROPE'S favourite song con- test kicked off yesterday in Tel Aviv, however young Maltese hopeful Michela Pace will be competing for a spot in the final on Thursday's second semi-final. The bookmakers' favourite to win this year is the Netherlands, with EurovisionWorld.com giv- ing the country a 23% chance of winning, an entire nine-point lead ahead of Sweden which cur- rently sits at second place in the polls. Represented by 24-year-old Duncan Laurence, the Nether- lands top spot hasn't wavered as other countries have fluctuated during dress rehearsals. Born in the Netherlands, Laurence, real name Duncan de Moor, is a graduate of the Rock Academy in Tilburg. He also competed on the country's version of The Voice, making it to the semi- finals. Laurence's Eurovision entry is called 'Arcade', a power ballad, and a considerable breakaway from Israeli winner Netta Bar- zilai's pop anthem 'Toy', which took Europe by storm last year. Australia's Kate Miller-Heidke is another fan favourite, moving five places in just one day since her second dress rehearsal. The entry's sitting at 5th place, with an indication they may move up depending on how they perform tonight during the first semi-final. Miller-Heidke is a classically trained opera singer, who began her acclaimed career perform- ing with Opera Queensland and Opera Australia, before releas- ing her debut pop record, 'Little Eve', through Sony in 2007. Iceland's entry has also caught the public's attention, with its anti-capitalist, techno perfor- mance. Hatari, an Icelandic techno and punk rock band, said that while the Eurovision Song Contest had been founded in the spirit of "peace and unity", they were "conflicted" about perform- ing in Israel due to the Israeli- Palestinian conflict. Iceland sits at 10th place in the odds. This year's host country has been contentious at the least, with Israel hoping the contest may help its image despite the international calls for a boycott. Overall Malta's own Michela Pace is expected to get through the second semi-final on Thurs- day, with the odds placing her 6th in the group of the 10 coun- tries who will go through to the final. The bookmakers currently have Malta set to come in at 9th place, however, the odds indicate that it could fluctuate depending on tonight's first semi-final and how Pace performs on the night. Odds are usually right where Eurovision is considered, apart from a few blips here and there. In 2008 Russia's winning entry was placed first in the odds by the bookmakers. The following year was the same story, with Rybak's Fair- ytale. Apart from wildcards such as Azerbaijan's 'Running Scared' in 2011 and Austria's 'Rise Like a Phoenix' in 2014, things are usu- ally predictable. Malta is set to compete on Thursday, with the final on Sat- urday 18 May. Bookies predict Netherlands win with power ballad Eurovision Malta's Michela Pace 9th favourite