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14 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 25 JUNE 2023 NEWS ANALYSIS ADPD chairperson Sandra Gauci clearly spelled out "the way for- ward" for her party when inter- viewed by MaltaToday last week. "More grounded; more down to earth; and closer to the people... especially, the working-class peo- ple," she told her interviewer. She also turned the tables on Labour for what she described a 'classist' attitude in "governing only for a select few" while "the rest of us have to bear the brunt, of the greed of this select few". These words suggest an ide- ological reorientation towards a more populist left-wing ap- proach, which reflects growing anger at inequality and the un- controllable power of fat cats. But her statement also suggests a shift in party strategy from one aimed at disgruntled mid- dle-class voters in more affluent localities to a more inclusive ap- peal directed at working class and Labour leaning voters. She has also unambiguously come out in favour of the de- criminalisation of abortion, thus departing from her party's past balancing act on an issue where it often found itself chasing with the hounds and running with the hares. She also candidly spoke on a need to rebrand the party. This clarity and frankness come across as a refreshing change. But to achieve results Gauci still faces five major hurdles which make her task precariously diffi- cult. 1. An Expired brand The name ADPD itself is evoc- ative of decline rather than hope. Throughout its 34-year exist- ence, the party has practically re- tained the same share of the vote in general elections - hovering between 0.7% and 1.8% - while losing all representation at local level. The Partit Demokratiku, which lent its name to AD after the merger, had succeeded in elect- ing two MPs in 2017 (admitted- ly on a Nationalist ticket) but both left the party orphaned just before its remnants were ab- sorbed by AD. Gauci now finds herself selling a combo of two products; one long past its expiry date (AD) and an- other which died in still birth (PD). Moreover, in the absence of a brand overhaul which must in- clude a name change, Gauci will end up selling her wares from a shop which has long lost interest in selling anything, except offer- ing comfort for the already con- verted. But the whole point of being a political party rather than a glorified NGO is to get elected in a position where policies can be changed. 2. The Metsola factor Sandra Gauci only has a few months to set her own house in order before finding herself fac- ing the electorate in an MEP con- test which can either make her of break her. One factor which may impact on AD's fortunes is Rob- erta Metsola's candidature on the PN list. Metsola could become a mag- net for the kind of middle of the road voters like those who had voted for Arnold Cassola in the 2004 EP election. One sure ad- vantage for Metsola is the respect she has earned during her term as president of the EU parliament; a post which gives her the gravitas which the AD leader will find hard to match. In this sense, Gauci's strategy of directly appealing to disgruntled Labour voters makes sense as these are the least likely to con- sider switching to Metsola and therefore to the PN. Gauci's affability and socialist orientation may help, which is why she must project herself as an insurgency candidate. The problem though with this strat- egy is that disgruntled Labour voters may well prefer registering their protest by not voting rather than by voting for a small party. Gauci may end up being stuck between a rock and a hard place; between the seductive ap- peal of Metsola on one side and the anger fuelling abstention on the other side. 3. The abstentionist party Angry and disgruntled voters have another option to voting a third party; that of not voting for anyone. That option may be more appealing to voters who prefer punishing the major par- ties by staying at home instead of voting for parties which have no realistic chance of winning. The latest MT survey shows that 16% of Labour voters in 2022 and 31% of 16-to-35-year-olds are now in- tent on not voting. In theory this should be an op- portunity for third parties, but the risk is that for these voters it is becoming more "cool" not to vote than to vote for a sure loser. Moreover, to succeed in making inroads in red territory, Gauci will also have to re-invent AD's playbook, which in past MEP elections was based on a template aimed at disgruntled pale blue voters. Gauci can make the argument that nothing will ever change with abstention. But it was fear of losing votes to abstention rath- er than to ADPD, that prompt- ed Robert Abela's pre-election u-turn on the proposed yacht marina in Marsaskala. 4. Civic activism is sexier The emergence of a vibrant civil society, where movements like Moviment Graffitti are perceived to be more effective than AD in delivering results, raises questions on the raison d'etre of a party founded in 1989 when it filled a void in civic activism. Furthermore, to succeed Gauci needs a committed team of activ- ists who tirelessly campaign for the party during and in between campaigns. But this may be diffi- cult considering that the activists closest to AD's values, are already committed in other campaigns. AD must try and convince civil society activists, that participa- tion in elections, gives added val- ue to their work. One way for AD to gain the trust of voters would be to focus on realisable targets like getting elected in a few local councils in which its representatives can make a difference in daily life and proceed to replicate the same success in a favourable district in general elections. One should not forget that two of AD's most effective lead- ers; Harry Vassallo and Michael Briguglio had both served as local councillors with the latter serving in the council while serving as party leader. One positive trait in Gauci is that she is not constantly nagging on the unfairness of the elector- al system. What she needs to do now is to find ways of using the system to her party's advantage and fight the perception of AD as a loser. But to get there she needs to brush up her own 'all over the place' image. Five hurdles in Sandra Gauci's Sandra Gauci's bid to re-invent the Greens as a viable political force which can attract apatetic voters is one fraught with difficulties. JAMES DEBONO tries to understand the obstacle race ahead