SINGAPORE: Singapore’s ruling People’s Action Party on Saturday (May 3) swept to the strong mandate that Prime Minister Lawrence Wong had called for, by outstrategising the opposition - particularly its main rivals the Workers’ Party - as well as by banking on voters appearing to opt for continuity and stability over greater checks and scrutiny, analysts said.
In its first General Election under Mr Wong, the PAP won 87 out of 97 seats, increased its vote share from 61.2 per cent to 65.57 per cent, won hotly contested wards and extended its margin of victory in most constituencies.
The WP meanwhile held on to its wards of Hougang, Aljunied and Sengkang; and came close enough in Jalan Kayu SMC and Tampines GRC to be offered two “best loser” Non-Constituency MP seats.
None of the nine other opposition parties contesting in the polls managed to secure a seat.
“It is a great mandate for the PAP,” said the party’s former MP Inderjit Singh. “Given the many issues Singaporeans faced and yet the PAP had such a big turnaround from GE2020 is a feather in the cap of PM Wong.”
Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan called the GE2025 result a “resounding victory and an authoritative mandate” for the PAP.
“The transition to the 4G leadership is now complete as the latest generation of leaders have secured a mandate that the 3G team would be proud of,” he added.
Associate Professor Tan noted that Mr Wong had bucked the trend of new Prime Ministers overseeing a drop in the PAP’s vote share during the leadership transition.
“It is also significant that PM Wong continues a trend of the PAP not allowing the opposition to make gains in two consecutive elections,” he said.
Experts also cited the PAP’s strategy of warning of the consequences of losing both present and future ministers, as a contributing factor - and a sign of voters choosing safety and security as trade-reliant Singapore navigates a period of global unease and economic turbulence.
Mr Wong had argued during the hustings that voting in more opposition candidates into parliament could mean losing potential officeholders and weakening the PAP government.
It led to a back-and-forth with WP leaders, which Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) research fellow Teo Kay Key said “had an effect in the PAP’s favour”.
“There seems to be a consolidation around status quo in this election, perhaps to try to ensure that the country has a tried-and-tested team leading us into these uncertain times,” she added.
National University of Singapore (NUS) political scientist Chong Ja Ian described Singaporean voters as typically “risk-averse”.
“They like what is familiar … Whether that’s good or bad is a different story,” he said. “The WP is also a beneficiary of voters voting for what is familiar.”
Political observers CNA spoke to were split on whether there were positive takeaways from the performance of Singapore’s main opposition party in the elections.
Associate Professor Chong noted that the WP had bucked the wider trend of a national swing away from opposition parties and towards the PAP, by not only retaining but increasing its vote share in constituencies it was defending.
“It’s in some ways a good election; of course they would have liked to do better, I’m sure,” he added. “They have momentum going into the next parliamentary session and the next election.”
Dr Teo noted that the WP had secured over 40 per cent of the vote in all new constituencies it contested, while the only other opposition party to do so was the Singapore Democratic Party, whose chief Chee Soon Juan managed 46.81 per cent in Sembawang SMC.
“It does show that the WP has grown its brand significantly amongst voters,” she said.
Mr Singh, the former PAP MP, said however that the WP “should be seen as making too slow a progress”.
“I am sure winning another GRC will give them more credibility than just winning a few more votes overall,” he said.
He said the WP had spread its stronger candidates too thinly across constituencies when they should have focussed in one “sure-win” GRC and SMC each.
“PAP also outsmarted WP with DPM Gan’s move to Punggol and therefore denying WP's star catches a win,” Mr Singh added, referring to Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong’s last-minute switch from Chua Chu Kang GRC to Punggol GRC, where the WP fielded senior counsel Harpreet Singh.
The PAP team won with 55.17 per cent of the vote to the WP’s 44.83 per cent, in a constituency many had expected to be closely contested.
Experts suggested that the GE2025 results could be viewed as a “serious loss” for the other opposition parties, who now trail further than ever behind the WP and could be entering decline.
The Progress Singapore Party, led by former PAP MP Tan Cheng Bock, managed 39.99 per cent of the vote in West Coast-Jurong West GRC – down from 48.3 per cent it got in 2020. It will mean the loss of two NCMP seats it held in the last parliament.
The SDP’s other high-profile candidate, Dr Paul Tambyah, saw his vote share in Bukit Panjang SMC drop from 46.27 per cent to 38.59 per cent.
“There will have to be much soul-searching by the PSP,” said Assoc Prof Tan from SMU. “With a subpar performance and now entering a new post-Tan Cheng Bock era, the PSP is staring at being a marginal player, perhaps even political irrelevance.
“How their star has faded in just one GE means that the PSP has their work cut out for them.”
Noting a record number of opposition candidates losing their election deposits - in seven constituencies - he added: “It's a crowded and increasingly fragmented opposition landscape and the status quo for the opposition is untenable.”
The analysts pointed to a two-party system as the way forward, as Singaporean voters become increasingly selective and keen to hold the opposition to similar standards as the PAP.
“People in Singapore like to talk about opposition unity. There are two ways you can get opposition unity: One is by coordination and cooperation, the other is by consolidation. I think we are starting to hit consolidation,” said Assoc Prof Chong.
“Voters are being more discerning. They will vote for parties they think are viable, all these smaller parties who they think are not viable are just going to see an increased drop in support.”
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In its first General Election under Mr Wong, the PAP won 87 out of 97 seats, increased its vote share from 61.2 per cent to 65.57 per cent, won hotly contested wards and extended its margin of victory in most constituencies.
The WP meanwhile held on to its wards of Hougang, Aljunied and Sengkang; and came close enough in Jalan Kayu SMC and Tampines GRC to be offered two “best loser” Non-Constituency MP seats.
None of the nine other opposition parties contesting in the polls managed to secure a seat.
“It is a great mandate for the PAP,” said the party’s former MP Inderjit Singh. “Given the many issues Singaporeans faced and yet the PAP had such a big turnaround from GE2020 is a feather in the cap of PM Wong.”
Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan called the GE2025 result a “resounding victory and an authoritative mandate” for the PAP.
“The transition to the 4G leadership is now complete as the latest generation of leaders have secured a mandate that the 3G team would be proud of,” he added.
Associate Professor Tan noted that Mr Wong had bucked the trend of new Prime Ministers overseeing a drop in the PAP’s vote share during the leadership transition.
“It is also significant that PM Wong continues a trend of the PAP not allowing the opposition to make gains in two consecutive elections,” he said.
Related:
Experts also cited the PAP’s strategy of warning of the consequences of losing both present and future ministers, as a contributing factor - and a sign of voters choosing safety and security as trade-reliant Singapore navigates a period of global unease and economic turbulence.
Mr Wong had argued during the hustings that voting in more opposition candidates into parliament could mean losing potential officeholders and weakening the PAP government.
It led to a back-and-forth with WP leaders, which Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) research fellow Teo Kay Key said “had an effect in the PAP’s favour”.
“There seems to be a consolidation around status quo in this election, perhaps to try to ensure that the country has a tried-and-tested team leading us into these uncertain times,” she added.
National University of Singapore (NUS) political scientist Chong Ja Ian described Singaporean voters as typically “risk-averse”.
“They like what is familiar … Whether that’s good or bad is a different story,” he said. “The WP is also a beneficiary of voters voting for what is familiar.”
A “GOOD” SHOWING FOR WP, OR “SLOW PROGRESS”?
Political observers CNA spoke to were split on whether there were positive takeaways from the performance of Singapore’s main opposition party in the elections.
Associate Professor Chong noted that the WP had bucked the wider trend of a national swing away from opposition parties and towards the PAP, by not only retaining but increasing its vote share in constituencies it was defending.
“It’s in some ways a good election; of course they would have liked to do better, I’m sure,” he added. “They have momentum going into the next parliamentary session and the next election.”
Dr Teo noted that the WP had secured over 40 per cent of the vote in all new constituencies it contested, while the only other opposition party to do so was the Singapore Democratic Party, whose chief Chee Soon Juan managed 46.81 per cent in Sembawang SMC.
“It does show that the WP has grown its brand significantly amongst voters,” she said.
Mr Singh, the former PAP MP, said however that the WP “should be seen as making too slow a progress”.
“I am sure winning another GRC will give them more credibility than just winning a few more votes overall,” he said.
He said the WP had spread its stronger candidates too thinly across constituencies when they should have focussed in one “sure-win” GRC and SMC each.
“PAP also outsmarted WP with DPM Gan’s move to Punggol and therefore denying WP's star catches a win,” Mr Singh added, referring to Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong’s last-minute switch from Chua Chu Kang GRC to Punggol GRC, where the WP fielded senior counsel Harpreet Singh.
The PAP team won with 55.17 per cent of the vote to the WP’s 44.83 per cent, in a constituency many had expected to be closely contested.
Related:
Experts suggested that the GE2025 results could be viewed as a “serious loss” for the other opposition parties, who now trail further than ever behind the WP and could be entering decline.
The Progress Singapore Party, led by former PAP MP Tan Cheng Bock, managed 39.99 per cent of the vote in West Coast-Jurong West GRC – down from 48.3 per cent it got in 2020. It will mean the loss of two NCMP seats it held in the last parliament.
The SDP’s other high-profile candidate, Dr Paul Tambyah, saw his vote share in Bukit Panjang SMC drop from 46.27 per cent to 38.59 per cent.
“There will have to be much soul-searching by the PSP,” said Assoc Prof Tan from SMU. “With a subpar performance and now entering a new post-Tan Cheng Bock era, the PSP is staring at being a marginal player, perhaps even political irrelevance.
“How their star has faded in just one GE means that the PSP has their work cut out for them.”
Noting a record number of opposition candidates losing their election deposits - in seven constituencies - he added: “It's a crowded and increasingly fragmented opposition landscape and the status quo for the opposition is untenable.”
The analysts pointed to a two-party system as the way forward, as Singaporean voters become increasingly selective and keen to hold the opposition to similar standards as the PAP.
“People in Singapore like to talk about opposition unity. There are two ways you can get opposition unity: One is by coordination and cooperation, the other is by consolidation. I think we are starting to hit consolidation,” said Assoc Prof Chong.
“Voters are being more discerning. They will vote for parties they think are viable, all these smaller parties who they think are not viable are just going to see an increased drop in support.”
Continue reading...