SINGAPORE: The election expenses returns of candidates who contested in the General Election 2020 will be available for inspection from Friday (Aug 21) to Feb 20, 2021, the Elections Department (ELD) said on Thursday.
Under the Parliamentary Elections Act, the election agents of all candidates who contested in an election must submit a declaration and a return of election expenses to the Returning Officer within 31 days after the day on which the result of the election is published in the Government Gazette.
AdvertisementAdvertisement"These returns are required to ensure accountability and transparency in the candidates’ campaign finance," said ELD in its press release.
The returns will be available for inspection at the ELD for a period of six months, and a fee of S$2 is payable for the inspection.
[h=3]READ: GE2020: PAP wins with 61.24% of vote; WP claims two GRCs including new Sengkang GRC[/h]Campaigning began on Nomination Day on Jun 30, and lasted for nine days until Jul 8, before the Cooling-off day on Jul 9. All 93 available seats were contested by 191 candidates from 11 political parties and an independent candidate.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe People's Action Party (PAP) won 61.24 per cent of the votes, taking 83 seats. The remaining 10 seats were won by the Workers' Party (WP), which took two Group Representation Constituencies (GRC).
According to the ELD, for the maximum amount a candidate can spend on election expenses depends on the number of voters in each constituency.
For Single Member Constituencies (SMCs), the maximum amount a candidate can spend is capped at S$4 for each elector in that electoral division.
For GRCs, the amount is capped at S$4 for each elector in that electoral division, divided by the number of candidates in the group.
The election expenses may be incurred before, during or after an election.
[h=3]READ: Sponsors of paid online election advertising have to be disclosed in tightened campaigning rules[/h]Election expenses incurred by a candidate can be paid by the candidate's political party, or an authorised officer of the party, in accordance with the authorisation of the candidate’s election agent.
An election agent of any candidate standing as part of a group contesting in a GRC may authorise, in writing, any of the election agents of the other candidates in the same group to act on his behalf as sub-agent to incur election expenses.
Any expenses paid by political parties and GRC sub-agents should be included in the candidates’ election expenses returns, said the ELD on its website.
Those who wish to inspect the returns are requested to make an appointment with the ELD at least one working day in advance via email to [email protected] and [email protected].
[h=3]BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of GE2020 and its developments[/h]Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates: https://cna.asia/telegram
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