Why the jury matters before Saturday’s final
What to know
- National juries and online viewers each contribute 50% of the final Junior Eurovision result.
- The officially confirmed 23 October event is a full Preview Show; a separate public jury voting time has not been established by the cited ticket guidance.
- Vote free for three songs at JESC.tv, beginning 23 October at 23:59 CEST.
Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2026 takes place at the Malta Fairs & Conventions Centre in Ta’ Qali on Saturday 24 October. Sixteen countries will compete, and the live broadcast begins at 21:00 CEST (22:00 in Kyiv). Although viewers can vote online, the final ranking is not decided by the public alone. National juries and the audience each contribute half of the points. That balance is especially important for fans comparing their own favourites with the eventual winner.
What is happening on Friday 23 October?
Friday brings the full evening Preview Show, officially described by Junior Eurovision as a complete run-through of the televised programme. It allows the production team and performers to present the show ahead of Saturday. The organiser’s public ticket information confirms the preview date, but does not specify a separate public start time for a jury-scoring session. Accordingly, the preview should not automatically be presented as an announced jury vote. The detailed scoring process must be distinguished from what spectators can attend.
How jury and audience points work
Junior Eurovision combines votes from national juries with free online voting. Each side accounts for 50% of the eventual score. This means an artist can enjoy strong public support yet finish behind a competitor who performs better with juries, or the reverse. The precise national jury scores remain unknown until the results are revealed during the live final; rehearsal clips and unofficial rankings are not actual jury results. Every participating entry remains in contention until the official announcement.
How fans can vote
The first online voting window opens on Friday 23 October at 23:59 CEST and closes on Saturday 24 October at 20:59 CEST, one minute before the televised show begins. In Ukraine that is Saturday 24 October from 00:59 to 21:59 Kyiv time. Voting reopens after the sixteenth song for approximately 15 minutes. Go to JESC.tv, watch the required material and select three favourite songs. Voting is free and fans may choose their own country’s entry.
What to follow during the broadcast
The Netherlands opens the running order with Maria and ‘Stronger Together’; Cyprus follows, Ukraine’s Erika Kolesnichenko performs ‘NOT A LULLABY’ in eleventh place, and Spain closes with Lucas Paulano. The order is a performance sequence, not a prediction of the score. For reliable results, rely on the official Junior Eurovision livestream and scoreboard rather than claims circulating before the show. Song Contest Radar’s running-order, participant and viewing guides bring together the official links ahead of the Malta final.
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Last verified: 23 October 2026.
