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4 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 24 SEPTEMBER 2025 ANALYSIS How Alex Borg's high-rise Alex Borg's Independence Day speech showcased his bid to turn the PN into a catch-all 'party of the nation'—but his tower blunder revealed the limits of trying to please everyone at the same time. James Debono dissects Alex Borg's first major speech ALEX Borg's election as par- ty leader has undoubtedly en- ergised the Nationalist Party's base, as was evident from the enthusiasm and sizeable crowd in Pjazza Tritoni on Saturday night. Moreover, there seems to be method to his approach, based on a well-thought-out script to transform the PN in- to a catch-all "party of the na- tion." But, as his tower debacle demonstrated, there are limits to catch-all politics: choices between conflicting interests sometimes have to be made. Unlike all PN leaders lost in the political wilderness after 2013, Borg shows an understanding of how a political party can win power in a two-party system. In short, a party needs to galva- nise its base, create momentum through a narrative of winning, and build a big-tent coalition where very different mentalities can coexist. That is why, despite his con- servative instincts, Borg is now coming across as a mainstream centrist politician, keen on avoiding culture wars that risk splitting his party. In a reassur- ing move for liberals, he even joined the Gay Pride march— something unthinkable for his favourite international politi- cian, Giorgia Meloni. In his Pjazza Tritoni speech, Borg dropped several hints on his leadership style while steer- ing clear of a divisive script. He warmed up to his audience, not- ing their big smiles and enthusi- asm. In short, he loves them and they love him back—something that proved difficult for Simon Busuttil and Bernard Grech. And while Delia did manage to connect with supporters, he re- mained too divisive, both inter- nally and externally. Winning beyond the base Borg also understands that voters will not cast their ballot tactically to reduce Labour's margin of victory. They will on- ly opt for the PN if they believe it is a government in waiting. In general, people do not vote for losers resigned to minimising defeats. Faced with certain loss, many PN voters are more like- ly to stay home or back a third party. Yet constantly stressing electability—while necessary to dispel the party's sense of inertia and resignation—could back- fire if Borg fails to keep up the pace or compromises too much, losing parts of the coalition he needs to win. He is right to say that the PN is not entitled to victory simply because it has spent 12 years in opposition. But here Borg risks conflating the thirst for change with the less appealing prospect of seeing the PN back in power. He tries to merge the two aspi- rations: the real thirst for change in the country's direction and an injection of "youthful energy," and the weaker thirst for "hav- ing the PN back at the helm." While addressing his restricted core of loyal voters, he also un- derstands that, to win, he must appeal to people "who have lost trust in political parties" and who do not feel they belong to either of the two big camps. The red and white flag Borg recognises that middle- of-the-road voters are turned off by divisive language, hence his constant references to "the red and white flag" and "nation- al unity." He also described his approach as one based on the "politics of persuasion". Crucially, like Joseph Muscat before him, Borg straddles the line between projecting his party as a promoter of national unity and depicting the adversary as a threat to the nation. In one of his most interesting remarks, he de- clared that he "has no enemies," only to add that "the enemies of his party are those who hate the nation." The insinuation being that Labourites are not enemies, but those who exploit power for self-enrichment are. He also defines being a Na- tionalist as "love for the nation," repeatedly calling the PN "the party of the nation." So far, however, there has been no hint of divisive nationalism based on ethnicity. His approach to migration is to encourage more Maltese into jobs such as nursing by offering higher sti- pends, rather than promoting an us vs them narrative. Still, it remains unclear whether long- term migrants some of whom are taking care of people's loved ones in nursing homes, are part of Malta's social fabric and not a blight to be removed. From Fortina to First-Time Buyers Borg also managed to articu- late a different discourse to con- front Labour on corruption. He cleverly compared the discount- ed land value offered to Fortina The mass meeting concluded the PN's traditional Independence Day activities (Photo: PN)