On March 24, 2008 Muscat announced his candidacy for the post of Party Leader, to replace Alfred Sant, who had resigned after a third consecutive defeat for the Party in the March 2008 general election and a heavy defeat in the EU referendum in March 2003.
Pada 24 Maret 2008 Muscat mengumumkan pencalonannya untuk jabatan Pemimpin Partai, untuk menggantikan Alfred Sant, yang mengundurkan diri setelah kekalahan ketiga berturut-turut bagi Partai di ] dan kekalahan berat dalam referendum Uni Eropa pada Maret 2003.