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4 maltatoday | MONDAY • 25 MAY 2026 NEWS ELECTION 2026 How demographics are reshaping In a five-part series James Debono explores how Malta's shifting age profiles, urbanisation patterns and internal DISTRICT 4: TESTING LABOUR GRIP IN WORKING CLASS TOWNS The fourth district is mostly composed of ageing towns, where the average age ranges from 43 in Gudja to 49 in Santa Luċija. Historically, the district attract- ed dockyard workers who moved from the harbour area after World War 2. The district includes both south- ern harbour towns like Paola and parts of Fgura, which are among the most heavily built-up and densely populated residential zones, and smaller towns with more traditional village-core characteristics, like Gudja. It also includes Santa Lucija, a unique town that evolved around a social housing project that is now ageing fast. But the community there has also shown resilience in opposing the transformation of terraced houses into apartment blocks, even if some residents have benefited from planning pol- icies that appreciated the value of their property. Paola, a large part of which is designated by planning policies to host single bedroom apartments on the pretext of serving students, is also facing demographic chal- lenges with apartments attracting an influx of non-Maltese workers. But the locality has also benefitted from major investment in a new health centre and a main square has been revitalised. Historically, District 4 is a staunch Labour Party stronghold, characterised by a predominant- ly Maltese working-to-middle- class population. However, like much of the harbour region, it has seen a gradual shift due to a growing influx of foreign workers and younger families moving into modern apartment blocks. The district has undergone sig- nificant changes over time. In 2003, it had a very different con- figuration, including parts of Mar- sa. Ahead of the 2008 election, sections of Marsa were redistrib- uted between Districts 1 and 4 to help balance voter numbers. In late 2011, the Electoral Commis- sion observed that District 4 was below the minimum voter thresh- old, prompting minor boundary adjustments at street level around Fgura and Tarxien to transfer ad- ditional voters into the district. Before the 2017 election, Marsa was fully removed from District 4 and incorporated into District 1, while compensating for the pop- ulation loss by extending District 4 further into parts of the expand- ing locality of Fgura. In 2025, the Fgura boundary lines were adjust- ed again to ensure both the sec- ond and fourth districts remained within the required +/- 5% voter variance. An analysis of past results shows support for Labour surging by 10 points between 2003 and 2022, reaching the two-thirds mark. But both parties lost votes to absten- tion in 2022, with Labour losing 1,164 votes from its 2017 tally and the Nationalist Party losing 890 votes. In the upcoming election, the PL will field 10 candidates, including three ministers—Jonathan Attard, Byron Camilleri and Chris Bonett. The PN is fielding five candidates, including energy spokesperson Mark Anthony Sammut and for- mer secretary general Michael Piccinino. The fourth district is mostly composed of ageing towns, where the average age ranges from 43 in Gudja to 49 in Santa Luċija. Historically, the district attract- ed dockyard workers who moved from the harbour area after World War 2. The district includes both south- ern harbour towns like Paola and parts of Fgura, which are among the most heavily built-up and densely populated residential zones, and smaller towns with more traditional village-core characteristics, like Gudja. It also includes Santa Lucija, a unique town that evolved around a social housing project that is now ageing fast. But the community there has also shown resilience in opposing the transformation of terraced houses into apartment blocks, even if some residents have benefited from planning pol- icies that appreciated the value of their property. Paola, a large part of which is designated by planning policies to host single bedroom apartments on the pretext of serving students, is also facing demographic chal- lenges with apartments attracting an influx of non-Maltese workers. But the locality has also benefitted from major investment in a new health centre and a main square has been revitalised. Historically, District 4 is a staunch Labour Party stronghold, characterised by a predominant- ly Maltese working-to-middle- class population. However, like much of the harbour region, it has seen a gradual shift due to a growing influx of foreign workers and younger families moving into modern apartment blocks. The district has undergone sig- nificant changes over time. In 2003, it had a very different con- figuration, including parts of Mar- sa. Ahead of the 2008 election, sections of Marsa were redistrib- uted between Districts 1 and 4 to help balance voter numbers. In late 2011, the Electoral Commis- sion observed that District 4 was below the minimum voter thresh- old, prompting minor boundary adjustments at street level around Fgura and Tarxien to transfer ad- ditional voters into the district. Before the 2017 election, Marsa was fully removed from District 4 and incorporated into District 1, while compensating for the pop- ulation loss by extending District 4 further into parts of the expand- ing locality of Fgura. In 2025, the Fgura boundary lines were adjust- ed again to ensure both the sec- ond and fourth districts remained within the required +/- 5% voter variance. An analysis of past results shows support for Labour surging by 10 points between 2003 and 2022, reaching the two-thirds mark. But both parties lost votes to absten- tion in 2022, with Labour losing 1,164 votes from its 2017 tally and the Nationalist Party losing 890 votes. In the upcoming election, the PL will field 10 candidates, including three ministers—Jonathan Attard, Byron Camilleri and Chris Bonett. The PN is fielding five candidates, including energy spokesperson Mark Anthony Sammut and for- mer secretary general Michael Piccinino. DISTRICT 5: A TEST FOR LABOUR'S GRIP IN THE SOUTH EAST The district, where the average age ranges between 40 in Mqabba and 43 in Birżebbuġa, is one of the youngest Labour- dominated districts and tests the party's hold in the south-eastern region. The district includes a number of smaller, traditionally close-knit, semi-rural villages like Kirkop, Qrendi and Safi that have seen demographic shifts and suburban development in recent years. It also includes semi-rural Zurrieq, which is one of the largest towns in the district, and Birzebbugia, a semi-industrial coastal town. The transformation of past industrial infrastructure like the Shell tanks into public parks has been a priority for the Labour government since before the 2022 election, but progress has been slow due to the time required to first decommission the site. Development pressures have also intensified in the smaller villages, particularly The district was also characterised by strong opposition (60%) to a spring hunting ban in the 2015 Localities Average age Fgura (part of) 43.4 Paola 46.4 Gudja 43.2 Santa Luċija 48.8 Tarxien 42.6 District 4: Towns and age Note: The average age is that of Maltese residents only. Source: NSO 4. 5. Year PL PN Others Turnout 2003 58.7% 40.8% 0.5% 95.9% 2008 61.5% 37.3% 1.2% 94.3% 2013 66.8% 32.1% 1.1% 94.5% 2017 67.7% 31.1% 1.2% 93.8% 2022 67.6% 29.5% 2.9% 86.9% District 4: General election results Source: Electoral Commission

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