Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1409324
6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 12 SEPTEMBER 2021 NEWS PAUL COCKS A temporary 'ceasefire' inside the Nationalist Party's hotly-con- tested ninth and tenth districts – the Sliema, St Julian's constitu- encies – has been brought about by the sudden hospitalisation of PN deputy leader Robert Arrigo. The fight for PN votes in the ninth district was shaping out to be a four-horse close chal- lenge between Arrigo, the Na- tionalist MPs Kristy Debono and Jason Azzopardi and crim- inal defence lawyer Joe Giglio. The district is made up of Msida, Swieqi, San Ġwann, Għargħur and Ta' Xbiex. Three Nationalist MPs were elected in 2017, when the PN secured 13,007 votes (56.3%): Debono (4,022 first count votes), Arrigo (2,099) and Marthese Portelli (1,468 votes). Portelli resigned in 2020 and Ivan J. Bartolo took her seat in a casual election. He later resigned to make way for new PN leader Bernard Grech. With Portelli's resignation – and with stalwarts George Pul- licino and Francis Zammit Di- mech announcing they will not be contesting the election – the road seemed set for a show- down between Arrigo, Debono and the two big newcomers to the district. It's a fight that is riven with deep-seated rivalry. Canvass- ers who spoke to this newspa- per said Azzopardi, a lawyer to the Caruana Galizia family, and Giglio have brought a new di- mension to the race for votes: clear animosity between the two. Azzopardi, long elected on the fourth district Labour stronghold, since first contest- ing in 1998, also spearheaded the PN's court challenges to force police investigations in- to the allegations published by the late journalist. Now he is trying to leverage his popular- ity with PN voters whose loy- alty to the memory of Daphne Caruana Galizia is an identifier to them. Many of these voters can be found in the Nationalist strongholds and middle-class towns of the ninth and tenth districts. But canvassers for his rivals say the MP is actually trying to save his parliamentary seat, be- cause he risks losing the fourth district where his appeal has suffered among a more work- ing-class vote that was loyal to former PN leader Adrian Delia. "Azzopardi was one of the main instigators in ousting former leader Adrian Delia," a canvasser for Kristy Debono, who supported Delia's bid for leader, told MaltaToday. "With Delia enjoying strong support in the south, Azzopardi could face a block-vote by disgrun- tled Delia supporters in his home district." Yet Azzopardi's quasi-path to victory with his new supporters was marred by the entrance of Joe Giglio, considered to being also pushed by leader Bernard Grech. A popular TV pundit on political chat shows, Giglio's stature was such that in a MaltaToday survey on pos- sible party leaders, he got an impressive showing together with Grech, Roberta Metsola and Claudio Grech. With at least three seats up for grabs in the ninth district, with Arrigo and Debono as incum- bents, Giglio and Azzo- pardi will have to battle it out in the race for PN votes. Canvassers have been out in full force over the past few weeks. Arrigo, a for- mer Sliema mayor, is a main- stay of the district and close to constituents. "The number of activities Robert was organis- ing weekly was unheard of," an activist close to Arrigio said. "With these new names in the running, we made a conscious decision to step up our visibil- ity in the ninth district and the 10th. He realised he could not sit back and count on tradi- tional support." Kristy Debono has also in- creased home visits: her past affiliation with Adrian Delia could risk losing her support with voters from a district that was not enamoured with Delia. Giglio and Azzopardi retain an oversized presence in the press and social media. Yet one party insider says Giglio's ties to particular clients is making him vulnerable to "whispering campaigns" on his suitability to become an MP. Azzopardi too has his internal detractors, who resent his cru- sading spirit as posturing that wins him a lot of media atten- tion. Azzopardi had also refused to have Giglio matched up with him when he was shad- ow justice minister, under a PN scheme to match incoming candidates with shadow minis- ters. The jury is still out on whether Arrigo's hospitalisation weak- ens the deputy leader's chanc- es of running on the district, a move that could open the field wide open for the main three contenders, with minor candi- dates Tiffany Abela Wadge and Graham Bencini fighting for latter-preference votes. pcocks@mediatoday.com.mt Ninth district infighting on hold Hospitalisation of heavyweight Robert Arrigo tempers taut race between PN candidates on hotly-contested ninth district All's fair in general election war: the ninth district is important to the PN, where it traditionally elects at least three seats, and apart from incumbents Robert Arrigo (main photo) and Kristy Debono (left), will see newcomers Jason Azzopardi (centre) and Joe Giglio fighting for a third seat. Canvassers say there is no love lost between the two lawyers It's a fight that is riven with deep- seated rivalry. Canvassers who spoke to this newspaper said Azzopardi, a lawyer to the Caruana Galizia family, and Giglio have brought a new dimension to the race for votes: clear animosity between the two. The Delia factor: Kristy Debono had lent her support to the outsider bid in the 2017 party leadership election, a move that radicalised PN opponents of Adrian Delia like Jason Azzopardi. The incumbent MP might feel the hurt from this association in the ninth district