Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1534344
mt SURVEY SUNDAY • 13 APRIL 2025 | maltatoday 8 Bernard Grech posts worst trust rating in 14 months PRIME Minister Robert Abela is still significantly more trusted to run the country than Opposition Leader Bernard Grech, MaltaToday's April survey shows. The results show that Abela is trusted by 46.5%, the same level of trust as in February, while Grech's rating has dropped to 20% from 24.7% two months ago. Grech's rating is the worst result since February last year when he received a rating of 16.7%. The de- cline in Grech's rating since the last survey corresponds to a 4.9-point increase in those who trust neither of the two leaders. This means that the trust gap between Abela and Grech has in- creased from 16 points in Septem- ber 2024 to 18 points in November to 22 points in February 2025 and 27 points now. While the survey confirms Abela's strong advantage over Grech, it also suggests that Grech's poor rating is not deterring a sizeable number of voters, who trust neither of the two leaders, from voting for the PN if an election is held now. In fact, 38.1% of current PN voters trust neither leader and surprisingly 3.7% trust Abela more than Grech but would still vote PN. And while only 58.2% of current PN voters trust Grech, a staggering 96.2% of current Labour voters trust Abela. What is definitely bad news for the Nationalists is Grech's extreme- ly low standing among current non-voters – a strategic category where the PN needs to make inroads to secure victory in the next gener- al election. In this sizeable catego- ry, only 2.5% trust Grech to run the country, while 25.3% trust Abela. This suggests that Labour has more room to grow in this vital category than the PN does. Abela leads in all six regions Despite Labour trailing the PN in three out of six regions, Abela leads Grech in all regions, including Gozo where trust in the opposition leader has dipped from 36.9% in February to 19.4% now. However, Abela's lead over Grech ranges from 42.7 points in the South Harbour region, to 7.7 points in the Northern region. The largest percentage of respond- ents who trust neither of the two leaders is found in the PN-leaning Northern region where 42.1% trust neither leader. Only 12% of young voters trust Grech In a clear indication of Grech's failure to communicate with young voters, only 12.1% of those aged be- tween 16 and 35 trust Grech over Abela. In contrast 47% of young voters trust Abela while 40.9% trust neither of the two leaders. Moreover, Grech's rating only improved slightly to 16.8% among those aged between 36 and 50 de- spite Abela's problems in this age group. In fact, among these voters who are at the peak of their career, Abela registers the lowest trust rat- ing (39.9%) and a relative majority trusts neither leader (43.4%). Abela more trusted by males The survey shows that while 50% of males trust Abela with leading the country, his trust rating drops to 43.3% among females. Grech is also marginally more trusted by females. Abela is also more trusted than Grech in all ed- ucational groups. But a relative majority of the tertiary educated (43.9%) trusts neither of the two leaders Significantly, Grech is least trusted by respondents who have continued their post-secondary studies but have not been to university. Only 13.8% of voters in this cohort trust Grech. JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt Age Gender Region Education 2022 Voters 90.0% 80.0% 70.0% 60.0% 50.0% 40.0% 30.0% 20.0% 10.0% 0 PL 2022 PN 2022 No vote 2022 5.3% 1.2% 1% 1.1% 11% 2% 77.7% 0.1% 0.8% 0.3% 19% 14.7% 17.7% 4.2% 2.2% 3% 58.3% PL PN Momentum ADPD Other Will not vote 2022 Voters 110% 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 87.2% 52.2% 66.8% Trust Barometer Robert Abela Bernard Grech None 0 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% 46.5% 20% 33.5% All Voters