National parliament election in Malta 2026

Malta is represented in the European Council by its Prime Minister, currently Robert Abela of the Maltese Labour Party (PL). Abela belongs to the centre-left Labour Party and works with the European social-democratic family through the Party of European Socialists (PES). Malta is one of the EU member states currently contributing a PES-affiliated government to the European Council.

The main opposition force is the Nationalist Party (PN, Partit Nazzjonalista), a centre-right Christian-democratic party that historically served as Malta’s principal pro-European force and led Malta into the European Union. The PN is affiliated with the European People’s Party (EPP), the political family of figures such as Ursula von der Leyen and Manfred Weber. The party’s close European profile is also reflected by the prominence of Maltese EPP figures such as Roberta Metsola. Should PN win the election, EPP would liekly hold 12 seats in the European Council, the highest value since Europe Elects records began in early 2019.

Among smaller actors, AD+PD combines environmentalist and progressive politics and aligns broadly with the European Green political family. Meanwhile, nationalist and anti-establishment movements on the right, such as Imperium Europa and other fringe parties, remain electorally marginal but occasionally attract attention around migration and sovereignty issues. Momentum is a newly established centrist reform party founded by veteran Maltese politician Arnold Cassola. At the European level, Momentum joined the European Democratic Party, placing it within the pro-European centrist space. The nationalist-conservative party Aħwa Maltin (“Maltese Brothers”), led by Paul Salomone, occupies a right-wing to far-right position in Maltese politics. Formerly known as Partit Popolari, the party combines social conservatism with anti-immigration policies, direct-democratic proposals, and strong emphasis on national identity and traditional values.

Votes here refer to first-preference votes unless stated otherwise.