European Parliament President Roberta Metsola is facing mounting speculation that she might leave her post in Brussels and take up the leadership of her centre-right political party in Malta.
The question arose after Bernard Grech, leader of the Nationalist Party, stepped down on Tuesday. Metsola has yet to make a definitive public statement, and her spokesperson declined to comment when asked if she would fill the role.
One of the party’s MPs even offered to give up his seat in Malta’s parliament on Wednesday to make way for a future candidate.
Politico reported that she indicated she felt bound to stay in Brussels because of her Parliament role. “I have a responsibility here,” she said.
Her decision – whether to jump into the deeply polarised Maltese political landscape or remain as the top MEP in Brussels – could come to define her political career.
The 46-year-old Parliament chief has had a blistering rise to the top of EU politics in Brussels, surpassing all expectations for a politician from the bloc’s smallest member country. She has been in her second term as Parliament president for less than a year.
Although Metsola has built a life in Brussels with her young family, she has never denied having national ambitions.
In EU circles, there is also a running narrative – dismissed by some – that to reach the top tier of global politics, she should gain executive experience as a head of government.
She is far and away her island’s most popular politician, having won two-thirds of her party’s total votes in last year’s European Parliament election.
But gaining power in Malta would be no mean feat. Her party has been suffering badly in the polls – 14 points behind the centre-left Labour party – and looks nowhere near power ahead of the next election in 2027.
To make matters worse for whoever takes over, Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela has threatened to call a snap election in the midst of the opposition’s leadership race.
The executive committee of her party will meet in Malta on Wednesday night to kick off the internal process, which could lead to up to 25,000 party members casting a vote.
The party’s International Secretary, Beppe Galea, said there are “an array of potential candidates for the leadership race.”
Magnus Lund Nielsen contributed reporting.
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