General Election 2025

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GE2025: Five questions to be answered on Nomination Day​

Yusof Ishak Secondary School is the nomination centre for East Coast, Pasir Ris-Changi, Punggol and Sengkang GRCs.PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO

Hariz Baharudin
Apr 22, 2025

SINGAPORE – The ruling PAP is expected to face contests in all 97 seats, with 10 opposition parties likely to field candidates in every constituency when nomination proceedings close at noon on April 23.

Follow our live coverage on Nomination Day as the parties unveil their final line-ups for the May 3 General Election.

Here are five things to look out for:

1) Where will the political heavyweights be fielded?​

Back in 2020, something was clearly afoot at the St Anthony’s Canossian Primary School nomination centre, when the PAP team for East Coast GRC arrived without an anchor minister.

With the retirement of former frontbencher Lim Swee Say, there had been a question mark over who would lead the PAP team in the constituency.

The answer came later that morning when Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat was spotted at the nomination centre.

Five years on, surprises are expected on Nomination Day again, with the deployments of several political heavyweights still unclear.


This includes whether DPM Heng will continue to anchor East Coast GRC, be fielded in another constituency, or retire from politics.

It appears certain that Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong will move from Marine Parade GRC to East Coast GRC, which has absorbed his Joo Chiat ward.

He was introduced by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman as the team’s leader in an April 19 visit to Bedok, although Mr Tong later said that “ministers are leaders of the GRC as a team”, and that DPM Heng is also a minister.

There is also a question mark over PAP’s deployment of Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean. He announced on April 21 that he will not be standing for re-election in the new Pasir Ris-Changi GRC, but added that he was still “available to contribute”.

Asked if he would be moving to Punggol GRC, SM Teo requested for a “little bit of patience”, saying that “everything will be clear” by Nomination Day.

The slate in Tanjong Pagar GRC, anchored by Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, is up in the air after Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Indranee Rajah’s surprise move to the new Pasir Ris-Changi GRC.

Then there is Senior Minister of State Janil Puthucheary, who currently serves in Pasir Ris–Punggol GRC. With the new Punggol GRC carved out for this election, there is a chance he could be tapped to anchor the team there.

While PAP teams in GRCs are typically led by a full minister, Dr Janil, as an incumbent and political office-holder, is one option to lead the team in Punggol.

On the WP side, there are similar uncertainties over where the party’s heavyweights could be fielded. The WP has kept its electoral cards close to its chest and not confirmed its line-up or which constituencies it will contest.

There has been chatter that party chief Pritam Singh could move out of Aljunied GRC to contest East Coast GRC. It is also unclear whether any of the other incumbent WP MPs in Aljunied – Ms Sylvia Lim, Mr Faisal Manap and Mr Gerald Giam – could be fielded elsewhere.

As for the party’s new faces, Senior Counsel Harpreet Singh Nehal has been spotted walking the ground in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC but could end up being fielded in East Coast GRC.

2) Which new faces will be on the PAP slate in East Coast and Punggol?​

The PAP has yet to unveil its line-up for five constituencies – East Coast, Punggol and Tanjong Pagar GRCs, and Radin Mas and Queenstown SMCs.

Potential PAP candidates have stepped up their ground efforts in these hotly contested constituencies.

In East Coast, new face Hazlina Abdul Halim looks set to take over the Siglap ward from Dr Maliki, who announced his retirement from politics on April 21.

(From left) PAP new faces Hazlina Abdul Halim and Goh Pei Ming with Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong, Ms Jessica Tan and Mr Tan Kiat How at Bedok Food Centre and Market on April 15.PHOTO: ST FILE
Mr Dinesh Vasu Dash, the former chief executive of the Agency for Integrated Care, was seen with East Coast GRC MPs at community events in the constituency soon after he resigned on March 28.

More recently, former brigadier-general Goh Pei Ming has been a regular presence on the ground with the incumbent East Coast GRC MPs.

Mr Goh has also been spotted in the new Punggol GRC, along with former Ministry of Transport director Foo Cexiang.

3) Where will the WP’s new faces be fielded?​

Of the 14 new faces introduced by WP so far, the opposition party has specified where only two would be fielded: technology start-up director Kenneth Tiong in Aljunied GRC, and town council senior property manager Abdul Muhaimin Abdul Malik in Sengkang GRC.

The party is being deliberate about how it unveils its deployment of candidates. In an April 20 press conference to introduce its final batch of new candidates, WP chief Pritam Singh requested that voters “understand how we have to determine what are the best prospects of success” for the party.

Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh (third from left) and chairman Sylvia Lim (third from right) with new faces (from left) Eileen Chong, Siti Alia Abdul Rahim Mattar, Abdul Muhaimin Abdul Malik and Kenneth Tiong on April 17. ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
While no official announcements have been made about where the rest of the WP candidates would be fielded, ground activity and GRC composition requirements offer some clues.

Mr Jimmy Tan, Mr Andre Low and Mr Jasper Kuan have been spotted in Tampines, while Dr Ong Lue Ping has been seen walking the ground in Punggol.

Mr Jackson Au has been pictured with the party’s Marine Parade team.

Political observers reckon that new face Paris V. Parameswari could be fielded in Punggol GRC, which requires one candidate who is Indian or from another minority community.

4) How many multi-cornered fights will there be?​

Since Singapore’s redrawn electoral boundaries were unveiled on March 11, political parties have wasted no time staking their claim on constituencies.

Based on party movements observed on the ground and statements made by politicians, at least four constituencies could see multi-cornered fights.

This includes a potential four-way contest in Tampines GRC involving the PAP, WP, National Solidarity Party and People’s Power Party.

Three-cornered fights are shaping up in Ang Mo Kio and Sembawang GRCs, as well as Potong Pasir SMC.

Many potential multi-cornered fights evolved into one-on-one duels with the PAP in past elections, as opposition parties coordinated to avoid vote-splitting.

This year, some opposition parties have already indicated they would pull back from certain areas following closed-door discussions, but it remains to be seen if others will follow suit.

5) Who else will bow out of politics?​

(From left) PAP veterans such as Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman and Senior Minister of State for Transport and Sustainability and the Environment Amy Khor have announced their retirement from politics in the lead-up to Nomination Day.PHOTOS: BRIAN TEO, BERITA HARIAN, ST FILE
Several PAP veterans have announced their retirement from politics in the lead-up to Nomination Day.

They include Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen and Dr Maliki, both of whom have served five terms since 2001.

Senior Minister of State for Transport and Sustainability and the Environment Amy Khor and two-term MP for Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC Chong Kee Hiong have also announced their retirements.

A number of first-term MPs have stated they will not be standing for re-election. They include Chua Chu Kang GRC MP Don Wee and Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Ng Ling Ling

ST had reported that about 20 PAP MPs are likely to retire before the upcoming election. While some have said publicly they will retire, others have signalled or hinted strongly at it.

They include Sembawang GRC’s four-term MP Lim Wee Kiak, Dr Tan Wu Meng from Jurong GRC, and Ms Foo Mee Har from West Coast GRC.

Senior Minister of State for Defence Heng Chee How from Jalan Besar GRC and Mr Sitoh Yih Pin from Potong Pasir SMC were also vague about their next moves.

 

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‘I am stepping up – again’: Three-time WP candidate Yee Jenn Jong looks set to contest GE2025​

Three-time WP candidate Yee Jenn Jong contested in Marine Parade GRC in both the 2015 and 2020 elections.PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM THE WORKERS' PARTY/FACEBOOK
Wong Pei Ting
Apr 22, 2025

SINGAPORE – Three-time WP candidate Yee Jenn Jong looks set to contest in the 2025 General Election, along with three other former candidates.

In a WP video released on April 22, the day before Nomination Day, the former Non-Constituency MP said: “I am stepping up – again.”

The 60-year-old, who in 2021 said that he had “largely retired from active politics”, delivered the line towards the end of the 50-second video, which also featured the 14 new WP candidates introduced over the past week.

Besides Mr Yee, former candidates Kenneth Foo, 48, a deputy director at the Singapore Cancer Society; IT professional Nathaniel Koh, 41; and lawyer Fadli Fawzi, 44, also appeared in the video.

Mr Yee, Mr Koh and Mr Fadli contested Marine Parade GRC in the 2020 election, while Mr Foo was part of the WP’s East Coast GRC team.

In 2011, Mr Yee, an education entrepreneur, came up against PAP veteran Charles Chong in the former Joo Chiat SMC in a close fight. Mr Chong prevailed with 51.02 per cent of the vote, and Mr Yee was appointed an NCMP as the “best loser” in that election.

The Joo Chiat single seat became part of Marine Parade GRC during the 2015 polls, and the ward has been absorbed into East Coast GRC for the 2025 polls.

Mr Yee contested Marine Parade GRC in both the 2015 and 2020 elections.

Since 2020, he was spotted walking the ground in East Coast GRC, and later Punggol, amid speculation then that the area would be carved out from Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC as a new group representation constituency.

In February, The Straits Times spotted him leading a team walking the blocks in Punggol Place. Two from the group have since been announced as WP candidates for 2025 – Dr Ong Lue Ping, 47, a senior principal clinical psychologist, and Mr Sufyan Mikhail Putra, 33, a former associate director at Abdul Rahman Law Corporation.

Speculation is rife that Mr Yee could either lead a team to conquer new ground in Punggol GRC – as he has been doing for the past few months – or return to his old stomping ground of Joo Chiat, which is now part of East Coast GRC.

All eyes will be on where he stands, as the WP is expected to mount a fierce challenge in both of these constituencies.

It is still unclear at this point if more former candidates would join the WP’s slate.

WP chief Pritam Singh has been mum on the total number of constituencies the party will contest.

When candidate introductions began on April 17, he declined to reveal where the party will contest, saying “you will know what they are in good time”.

He also declined to say how many candidates it will field for the general election.

When the party’s four-day candidate introduction came to a close on April 20 with 14 new faces unveiled, Mr Singh left open the possibility of the WP fielding more new faces come Nomination Day, pointing to the need to prepare spare candidates.

 

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Prudent, responsible approach is crucial in uncertain times: PM Wong​

PM Lawrence Wong said the Government will always support, stand with and go all out to secure a bright future for Singaporeans.ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

Michelle Ng
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE – The prudent and responsible approach that the Government has taken to managing public finances and cost pressures is especially crucial in these uncertain times, said Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on April 22.

In a video posted on his social media channels the night before Nomination Day, PM Wong said: “I will not gamble with your lives or your future.”

He said the Government will always support, stand with and go all out to secure a bright future for Singaporeans.

Singapore goes to the polls on May 3. With Nomination Day on April 23, that gives candidates the minimum nine days of campaigning before Cooling-off Day on May 2.

PM Wong cautioned Singaporeans that they will hear “many tempting proposals” in this election that may sound appealing, although not all are sound.

“If they weaken our public finances, the burden will fall on our children. If we mismanage the economy, investors will lose confidence and our incomes will suffer,” he said.

Singapore would then not have the resources to sustain permanent support schemes or even to provide temporary relief, he added.


In recent Budgets, the Government has rolled out extensive support measures to allay concerns over inflation and job security, among other things. These include vouchers to ease cost-of-living pressures, and a scheme to help those who have lost their jobs but are making efforts to bounce back.

PM Wong said he knows cost-of-living pressures are a real concern. Other countries feel them too, as they are caused by hot wars in Europe and the Middle East, along with global supply chain disruptions, tariffs and trade wars, he added.

A comprehensive support package was announced in February during Budget 2025, as the Government had foreseen some of these challenges earlier in the year, he said.

For instance, a typical family of four with two young children can receive around $5,000 in support this financial year.

Measures will be rolled out in the coming months, he said, including CDC vouchers in May, SG60 vouchers in July, Child LifeSG credits from July onwards, and U-Save rebates in July and October.

“So nearly every month, you can expect something,” he said.

PM Wong said the Government is monitoring the situation closely and will step up support if conditions worsen.

Beyond this year, the Government will continue the help for as long as it is needed, he said.

This can be done because the PAP Government has long managed the economy well – and will continue to do so – and Singapore’s public finances are healthy and strong, he added.

The Prime Minister also touched on how Singapore handles its public finances. Many other countries borrow heavily and pay interest on their loans, but Singapore does not, he said.

Instead, the Republic has reserves that are invested, and all Singaporeans benefit from the investment income generated, he said.

PM Wong said: “So at a time when other governments are looking for ways to trim spending or to cut benefits, we are able to deliver more support and enhance social safety nets for everyone.”

For example, Workfare for lower-wage workers has been enhanced and seniors get extra support, especially the Merdeka and Pioneer generations, he added.

The bulk of Singapore’s social spending – which is rising and is now the largest item in the budget, having overtaken defence spending – is on such permanent schemes, said PM Wong.

“That is how we provide real, sustained support to help every Singaporean with the cost of living and at every stage of life,” he said.

Ultimately, he added, the best way to manage cost pressures is to keep incomes rising faster than inflation.

This has been happening in Singapore, as real incomes for Singaporean households have gone up steadily over the years, he said. For this to continue, Singapore’s economy must keep growing, and the Government must manage it prudently and responsibly.

In a separate video posted earlier in the evening, PM Wong said that amid the current global climate – where it feels like “more walls are going up” and “countries are pulling back” – Singapore will stay open, bold and ready to work with the world.

For Singapore, as a small nation, its greatest strength is not its size but the fact that “we show up, not just for ourselves, but also for the world”, he said.

 

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GE2025: With family at his core, WP new face Jasper Kuan says he’s stepping up for the next generation​

Mr Jasper Kuan says family is at the centre of everything that he does, and has shaped his views of what Singapore can be.ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG

Kok Yufeng
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE - Underneath an unassuming and genial manner, Mr Jasper Kuan has a fire in his belly.

Sitting down with The Straits Times for an interview on April 22, days after he was unveiled as a new WP candidate for the 2025 General Election, the 46-year-old would often break into a hearty laugh and stop mid-conversation to wave to passing residents, to whom he is a familiar face.

But get him started on issues close to his heart – be it education, social security or public transport – and the former teacher turned payments expert speaks with focus and zeal.

“I think there are people who are better qualified than me. People who are more eloquent than me. People who are better at policy. But my value is that I understand the pain that regular folk are feeling,” he said at the void deck of a Housing Board block in Hougang, where he has lived for a decade and been a WP volunteer for close to five years.

Mr Kuan – who has two sons aged 11 and eight, and a five-year-old daughter – said family is at the centre of everything that he does, and has shaped his views of what Singapore can be.

The son of a cabby and a stay-at-home mother, Mr Kuan said: “We had enough. We were happy.”

Things took a turn when he was in his late teens after his late father developed kidney failure and needed dialysis thrice a week. His late mother had throat cancer, which she battled for 20 years.

“She’s a fighter. But every time she fought and won, her quality of life dropped. You could see it. Towards the last five years of her life, she was on a drip, and she couldn’t eat or talk,” Mr Kuan recounted.

He and his older sister were hit hard – financially and in spirit. But they pulled through with help from relatives, and it was this episode that made him feel strongly about the need for a stronger social safety net.

“I always tell people, I think I’m a very resilient person. You hit me, I’ll stand up, and I’ll come back to fight. But do I want the next generation to go through that? Can we do something about it? We can. The Government can. And this is where we need to step up,” he added.

Mr Kuan said he hopes to see community touchpoints and networks such as family service centres and residents’ committees being put to better use.

He said he started volunteering at Meet-the-People Sessions (MPS) in Hougang as a case writer after the 2020 General Election, as he wanted to help residents. “To me, it was apolitical. MPS is very neutral. It is all for the residents.”

In 2021, he became secretariat assistant to incumbent Hougang MP Dennis Tan. He was subsequently Mr Tan’s legislative assistant before becoming a party member.

Mr Kuan also took a step down in his career as his grassroots work got heavier, moving from a director role at Mastercard to a senior manager post at Visa, where he is now the Asia-Pacific product lead for disputes solutions.

Mr Tan eventually asked him to be a WP candidate at the upcoming election – a request that he initially turned down, Mr Kuan said, declining to say when this took place.

“I have a very comfortable life. I love my job... And I love my kids. I didn’t want that to be shaken up,” Mr Kuan recalled.

It was a conversation with former WP chief Low Thia Khiang that changed his mind.


Mr Kuan said Mr Low had asked him if Singapore’s current system would provide a future that he wanted for his children, and if Mr Kuan could contribute to changing this trajectory.

“He said, if you do this, it is not just for your family... You are actually doing things for an entire generation.”

He said he connected with Mr Low as they are both former teachers. “My belief in leadership is very similar to his... What you teach your children to do, you have to do yourself. Servant leadership is very important to me.”

Before joining the finance sector in 2011, Mr Kuan had spent six years at Catholic High School, where he taught both mainstream and Gifted Education Programme classes.

But he felt disheartened by the Ministry of Education’s “Teach Less, Learn More” initiative, which Mr Kuan believes has led to an over-reliance among students on after-school tuition courses.

“I felt that I needed a change. The policies that came in were not really reflective of how I perceived education to be,” he added.

“I feel very strongly that we need a certain level of equity... At least so that the kids that don’t have the resources can move forward.”

He echoed the proposal in the WP’s 2025 election manifesto for an optional 10-year through-train programme that will allow students to progress from Primary 1 to Secondary 4 without taking the PSLE.

“The challenge is, can we find a way, not to totally remove it, but incrementally look at how we can re-prioritise.”

During his time at Mastercard and Visa, Mr Kuan played a key role in enabling credit and debit card payments for public transport systems across Asia, including Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore.

He said his time in the corporate world has led him to believe that competition drives better outcomes. “If you have dominance for too long, innovation stops and everything gets stagnant,” he added.

In the same vein, Mr Kuan said it is why he decided to support the WP, even as the world is becoming more turbulent. “We always say in turbulent times, we want stability. That is true somewhat. But in turbulent times, you also don’t want stagnation.”

Over the past year, Mr Kuan has been seen walking the ground in the Tampines area.

He was coy when asked if he would like to stand there if given the choice, hewing to the party line that all will be known on Nomination Day on April 23.

Going outside the WP stronghold of Hougang, Mr Kuan said he was initially afraid of being rejected by residents. But he feels the ground has shifted.

“I think Singaporeans as a whole are becoming more aware of the need for a credible opposition,” he said. “It’s a good sign of a maturing democracy.”

 

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GE2025: WP team replaces Faisal Manap in Aljunied GRC with newbie ahead of fight against fresh PAP slate​

WP candidates Faisal Manap (right) and Gerald Giam seen during Nomination Day at Poi Ching School in Tampines Street 71, on April 23.ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
Isabelle Liew
Apr 23, 2025


SINGAPORE - WP vice-chair Faisal Manap moved out of the Aljunied GRC to Tampines after party chief Pritam Singh’s last-minute reshuffle of the team that will face off against a refreshed PAP slate.

The PAP team, which also filed its nomination papers at Poi Ching School in Tampines on April 23, comprises second-time candidate Chan Hui Yuh, 48, dental surgeon Faisal Abdul Aziz, 37, company director Adrian Ang, 42, urban planning consultancy chief Daniel Liu, 40, and unionist Jagathishwaran Rajo, 37.

WP’s updated line up in Aljunied GRC will be led by Mr Singh, 48, WP chair Sylvia Lim, 60, and Mr Gerald Giam, 47.

The incumbents will be joined by new face Kenneth Tiong, 36, and Mr Fadli Fawzi, 44, who previously contested Marine Parade GRC under the WP banner in 2020.

The PAP will seek to prise Aljunied GRC out of the hands of the WP, which has held the constituency since 2011. In the Hougang single seat, which the WP has held since incumbent WP MP Dennis Tan, 54, a shipping lawyer, will battle it out with PAP new face, lawyer Marshall Lim, 38.

The candidates turned up all smiles as supporters cheered them on at Poi Ching School, which is a nomination centre for Aljunied GRC, Hougang SMC, Tampines GRC and Tampines Changkat SMC.


The Workers’ Party had not disclosed its full slate for Aljunied GRC before Nomination Day, only confirming that Mr Tiong, a director at tech start-up Sensemake AI, would be fielded in the group representation constituency’s Serangoon ward.

Mr Tiong, who was introduced as a candidate in a press conference on April 18, had said he plans to push for stronger economic security and strong family foundations if elected.

The PAP five-member Aljunied team is led by Ms Chan, 48, a marketing director who has helmed the PAP’s Serangoon branch since 2014 and is the only remaining member from the party’s 2020 slate.

The other four are new faces but have been involved in party work for at least a decade.

In the Covid-19 polls in 2020, the WP managed a near 10-point swing to win with 59.95 per cent of the votes.

The boundaries for Aljunied GRC will remain largely unchanged in this election, though three polling districts in Tampines West – comprising 3,834 voters – have been moved to the PAP-held Tampines GRC.

As at Feb 1, Aljunied GRC has 144,032 registered electors.

It was the first GRC won by an opposition party since the GRC system was introduced in 1988 – a milestone in Singapore’s political history.

The WP team led by then party chief Low Thia Khiang secured 54.72 per cent of the vote in 2011.

Hougang has been WP’s stronghold since 1991, the year that Mr Low Thia Khiang wrested control of the constituency from the PAP with 52.82 per cent of votes.

In 2020, Mr Dennis Tan won the single seat with 61.2 per cent of the vote.

 

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GE2025: Chan Chun Sing helms Tanjong Pagar GRC, newcomer Foo Cexiang replaces Indranee​

Education Minister Chan Chun Sing will lead the group representation constituency, taking onboard newcomer Foo Cexiang.ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO

Theresa Tan
Apr 23, 2025


SINGAPORE - The PAP kept its cards close to its chest for Tanjong Pagar GRC until the very end, only revealing the slate of candidates at 11.28am, just before closing at noon.

Education Minister Chan Chun Sing, 55, will lead the group representation constituency, taking onboard newcomer Foo Cexiang, 40, it was announced on Nomination Day on April 23.

Mr Foo, a former director at the Ministry of Transport, is making his electoral debut in the May 3 general election.

The other members of the team are incumbents Ms Joan Pereira, 58, and Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Culture, Community and Youth Alvin Tan, 45.

Rounding out the five member team is Ms Rachel Ong, 53, whose Telok Blangah ward under the former West Coast GRC is now part of Tanjong Pagar.

The PAP will face a team from the People’s Alliance for Reform (PAR), comprising: Mr Prabu Ramachandran, a 36-year-old commercial banker; Mr Nadarajan Selvamani, a 59-year-old director of a private school; Mr Rickson Giauw, a site safety advisor and officer; Ms Han Hui Hui, a 34-year-old human rights fellow at a foreign university; and Mr Soh Lian Chye, a senior logistics assistant.

The PAR is an alliance of three parties: Peoples Voice, Reform Party and the Democratic Progressive Party.

Tanjong Pagar GRC was the subject of intense speculation when Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Indranee Rajah announced on April 21 that she would move to anchor Pasir Ris-Changi GRC - taking over from Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean.

On April 23, PAP announced that Mr Foo was taking over Ms Indranee’s seat in Tanjong Pagar GRC, one of three GRCs where the PAP did not reveal its slate of candidates before Nomination Day.

The other two are East Coast and Punggol GRCs.

Meanwhile, Mr Eric Chua, who helms the Queenstown ward, previously under the Tanjong Pagar GRC, will be the PAP candidate for the new Queenstown SMC.

Mr Chua, who made his political debut in 2020, is the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for the Ministry of Social and Family Development and Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth.

He will face PAR’s Mr Mahaboob Batcha, an oil and gas company director. The 57-year-old is contesting his first general election.

Over at Radin Mas SMC, PAP’s Melvin Yong, 53, will be involved in a three-cornered fight with PAR’s Kumar Appavoo, a 56-year-old businessman, and independent candidate Darryl Lo Kar Keong, 28.

In the 2020 General Election, Mr Yong, the assistant secretary-general of NTUC, won 74.03 per cent of the vote against Mr Kumar, who was contesting under the Reform Party banner.

Radin Mas was the second-highest-scoring constituency for the PAP in 2020, after Jurong GRC.

Mr Lo, who had earlier announced his intention to make a bid for Radin Mas SMC, has a law degree from the Singapore Management University.

He was listed as unemployed in the nomination papers, but previously said he had worked for start-ups in the technology sector.

This was according to his Instagram posts, where he first announced his intention to run as an independent in Radin Mas.

Tanjong Pagar GRC has been a PAP strong-hold since Singapore’s founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew won the single-member seat in 1955.

Mr Lee, who died in 2015, helmed the ward for almost 60 years.

It became a GRC in 1991 and saw multiple walkovers until 2015, when SingFirst, led by former presidential candidate Tan Jee Say, contested in the general election.

PAP won with 77.7 per cent of the vote.

In the 2020 General Election, PAP took 63.13 per cent of the vote against the Progress Singapore Party.

On May 3, some 139,688 voters will get to choose which party to represent them in Tanjong Pagar GRC.

 

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Stage set for four-way fight in Tampines GRC; PAP and WP go head-to-head in Tampines Changkat SMC​

Aqil Hamzah
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE - Three opposition parties will duke it out in the quest to win Tampines GRC and unseat the incumbent PAP team led by Social and Family Development Minister Masagos Zulkifli.

After successfully submitting their nomination papers at Poi Ching School in Tampines Street 71, the PAP will face a contest from the WP, National Solidarity Party (NSP) and People’s Power Party (PPP) when Singaporeans go to the polls on May 3.

The ruling party’s team will be led by Mr Masagos, 62, who was first elected to Parliament in 2006.

His team comprises two other incumbents: Dr Koh Poh Koon, 53, Senior Minister of State for Manpower and Sustainability and the Environment; and Mr Baey Yam Keng, 54, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Transport and Sustainability and the Environment.

Rounding up the team are two political newcomers: former chief of army David Neo, 47, and Dr Charlene Chen, 43, an assistant professor of marketing at Nanyang Technological University.

The Workers’ Party, which has kept coy about where its candidates will contest, confirmed that its five-member team will comprise party vice-chair Faisal Manap, 49, Mr Jimmy Tan, 53, the co-founder of industrial equipment supply firm Immanuel Engineering, Institute of Mental Health senior principal clinical psychologist Ong Lue Ping, 48, former diplomat Eileen Chong, 33, and Mr Michael Thng, 37, co-founder of tech start-up Showdrop.

Mr Faisal entered Parliament in 2011 and was an MP for Aljunied GRC until he joined the Tampines GRC slate in a last minute switch on Nomination Day.

Four of the five team members were only recently unveiled to the public in a series of press briefings over the previous weekend.

This is the first time the WP has entered the fray in Tampines GRC. However, it has been laying the groundwork since at least 2016, including making house visits and doing the rounds in the neighbourhood.

NSP, which has contested Tampines GRC in the last three elections, will field party president Reno Fong, 56, vice-president Mohd Ridzwan Mohammad, 63, assistant secretary-general Eugene Yeo, 49, financial planner Zee Phay, 32, and Mr Thamilselvan Karuppaya, 57, who is self-employed.

PPP secretary-general Goh Meng Seng, 55, will be leading the team.

Joining him are party chairman Derrick Sim, 44, landscaping executive Vere Nathan, 26, green tech firm founder Peter Soh, 65, and entrepreneur Arbaah Haroun, 50.

Tampines GRC has long been a PAP stronghold since its formation in 1988, when the group representation constituency system was introduced.

At the last election in 2020, the PAP team won 66.41 per cent of the vote - outperforming the national vote share of 61.24 per cent in 2020. In 2015, the PAP polled 72.06 per cent in Tampines, with a national vote share of 69.9 per cent.

The PAP has faced a straight contest in Tampines GRC at every election, except in 1997, when there was a walkover.

That same year was also the last time there was a four-way fight at the polls, when the PAP, NSP, an independent candidate and the Democratic Progressive Party vied for the Chua Chu Kang single seat, with PAP candidate Low Seow Chay emerging victorious with 61.9 per cent of the vote.

This year, a similar four-way fight was expected for the newly carved out Tampines Changkat SMC, but on Nomination Day, only the PAP and WP filed papers to contest the single seat.

Incumbent Tampines GRC MP Desmond Choo, an assistant secretary-general of the National Trades Union Congress and director of its policy division, will stand under the PAP banner in the single seat.

Mr Choo, 47, is the Mayor of North East District, and made his electoral debut in the 2011 general election, when he lost to WP candidate Yaw Shin Leong in Hougang SMC.

He lost again the following year at a by-election - this time against WP candidate Png Eng Huat - before entering Parliament in 2015.

This year, he will go up against another WP candidate, Mr Kenneth Foo, who stood in Nee Soon GRC in 2015 and East Coast GRC in 2020 under the party’s sky-blue banner.

Mr Foo, 48, is a deputy director at the Singapore Cancer Society, and is also deputy organising secretary of WP.

 

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GE2025: PAP retains Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC as WP pulls out; first walkover since 2011​

The PAP team was expected to be challenged by a team from WP.ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE

Ng Keng Gene
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE – In an unexpected turn of events, the PAP won its first constituency at the 2025 General Election when it stood uncontested for the five-member Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC on April 23.

The PAP team was expected to be challenged by a team from WP, which had contested Marine Parade GRC in 2020 and garnered 42.26 per cent of the vote, losing to PAP’s 57.74 per cent.

Minister of State for National Development and Home Affairs Faishal Ibrahim, Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng, incumbent MacPherson MP Tin Pei Ling and PAP new faces Diana Pang and Goh Pei Ming will be part of Singapore’s 15th Parliament.

This is the first walkover at a General Election since 2011.

Signs that the WP would not be contesting emerged on April 23 morning at the Aljunied-Hougang Town Council Hougang Office, when reporters from The Straits Times heard WP supporters talking among themselves that the party would not contest Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.

The non-contest was confirmed at Kong Hwa School – the nomination centre for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights – when a team from the WP failed to show up to register as candidates for the election.

At about 11.20am – 40 minutes before the deadline for candidates to file their nomination papers – Mr Goh Pei Ming showed up at Kong Hwa School, the nomination centre for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC, without the rest of the PAP team for the constituency.

Mr Goh had been seen at walkabouts in East Coast GRC prior to Nomination Day.

About five minutes later, four PAP candidates – Dr Faishal, Mr Seah, Ms Tin and Ms Pang – walked into the centre together, without Dr Tan See Leng, who had been slated to lead the team into the election and was spotted earlier in the morning at the PAP’s Mountbatten branch office, where the party’s candidates for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC had gathered.

Dr Tan’s was later seen at the nomination centre for Chua Chu Kang GRC, and he will be part of the PAP’s team contesting the constituency.

Since the 2020 election, WP members and volunteers have continued to walk the ground, with one of the party’s candidates for Marine Parade at that election – Mr Nathaniel Koh – posting on social media recently about an April 19 walkabout at Marine Parade Central Market and Food Centre.

The last walkover at a General Election was in 2011, when a PAP team for Tanjong Pagar GRC stood uncontested, sending Mr Chan Chun Sing, Dr Chia Shi-Lu, Ms Indranee Rajah, Mr Lee Kuan Yew and Dr Lily Neo to Parliament.

The newly renamed Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC is formed from parts of Marine Parade GRC, MacPherson SMC, Mountbatten SMC and Potong Pasir SMC.

Marine Parade GRC has been contested at three consecutive elections, in 2011, 2015 and 2020.

In 2006, a team led by then-Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong won the constituency in a walkover.

That team also comprised Dr Faishal and Mr Seah, who were making their electoral debuts, as well as incumbent Mountbatten MP Lim Biow Chuan, Dr Ong Seh Hong and Dr Fatimah Lateef.

​

 

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GE2025: Edwin Tong to lead PAP’s East Coast team against WP veteran Yee Jenn Jong’s slate​

Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong (second from left) will lead the PAP’s East Coast GRC team comprising Senior Minister of State for National Development Tan Kiat How (left), Mr Dinesh Vasu Dash (right), Ms Jessica Tan (second from right) and Madam Hazlina Abdul Halim (third from right). DPM Heng Swee Keat (third from left), who led the team the last round, is not on the slate.ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI

Goh Yan Han
Apr 23, 2025


SINGAPORE – Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong, 55, will lead the PAP’s East Coast GRC team against a WP team helmed by party veteran Yee Jenn Jong, 60.

Mr Tong will be joined by two incumbents – Senior Minister of State for National Development Tan Kiat How, 47, and Ms Jessica Tan, a four-term backbencher, 58.

Rounding out the slate are two new faces, Mr Dinesh Vasu Dash, 50, former chief executive of the Agency for Integrated Care, 50, and Madam Hazlina Abdul Halim, 40, former journalist and current senior vice-president at advisory firm Teneo.

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, 64, who led the team the last round, is not on the slate.

Apart from Mr Yee, the rest of the WP East Coast team comprises second-time candidate Nathaniel Koh, 41, along with three new faces - Ms Paris V. Parameswari, 51, Mr Sufyan Mikhail Putra, 33, and Mr Jasper Kuan, 46.

Ms Paris is a former US Navy security administrator, Mr Sufyan is a former associate director at a law firm while Mr Kuan is the Asia-Pacific product lead for disputes solutions at payments firm Visa Worldwide.

The line-ups were confirmed on April 23 at the Yusof Ishak Secondary School nomination centre, ending months of speculation that came right down to Nomination Day itself.

The five-member East Coast GRC, which was the second-closest winning margin for the PAP at GE 2020, is set for another close fight.

Both the incumbent PAP and WP will be looking to improve on their previous showing.

In 2020, the PAP team led by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat - who was shifted to the GRC in a Nomination Day surprise - won against the WP with 53.39 per cent of the vote. The WP received 46.61 per cent.

Two members of that PAP team had earlier announced their retirement from politics – Dr Maliki Osman and Ms Cheryl Chan.

The constituency’s boundaries have shifted this round.

The Joo Chiat ward from Marine Parade GRC has been absorbed into the constituency, while the Loyang and Flora estates of the Siglap ward have been drawn into the neighbouring Pasir Ris-Changi GRC.

There are 150,691 voters, of which about 40,000 came from the private estates of Joo Chiat and public housing blocks of Chai Chee.

East Coast has historically been one of the hottest election battlegrounds, with the WP chipping away at the vote share each election.

In 2015, all three NCMP slots went to WP candidates who contested in East Coast GRC – Leon Perera and Daniel Goh – and Fengshan SMC’s Dennis Tan.

NCMP seats are given to the “best losers” of each election.

That Mr Tong is anchoring the PAP’s East Coast team comes as no surprise, as he has been overseeing the Joo Chiat ward since 2015.

In the run-up to the polls, he had also expressed his desire to continue serving Joo Chiat residents when asked by the media.

Mr Yee’s return to politics was teased in an online video by the WP on the eve of Nomination Day.

He first entered politics in 2011, contesting in Joo Chiat SMC, where he lost narrowly. He was then appointed to a Non-Constituency MP position. The Joo Chiat area has since been carved into East Coast GRC.

He later contested as part of WP’s Marine Parade GRC slate in 2015 and 2020.

 

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GE2025: PAP’s Ng Chee Meng faces off against WP’s Andre Low in Jalan Kayu SMC​

PAP’s Ng Chee Meng (left) will face off with Workers’ Party newcomer Andre Low in Jalan Kayu SMC in the upcoming general election.ST PHOTOS: GAVIN FOO, SHINTARO TAY

Ho Ai Li
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE - Workers’ Party newcomer Andre Low will face off against PAP’s Ng Chee Meng in Jalan Kayu SMC in the upcoming general election.

The People’s Action Party (PAP) had announced on April 19 that Labour chief Ng would be contesting the single seat, but up till Nomination Day it had remained unclear who he would be up against.

The WP had been giving out fliers in Jalan Kayu, without announcing a potential candidate for the constituency.

On Nomination day on April 23, Mr Low, 33, a former disputes lawyer, was seen walking into Deyi Secondary in Ang Mo Kio at around 10.30am.

The school is also the nomination centre for Ang Mo Kio GRC, Kebun Baru SMC and Yio Chu Kang SMC - constituencies which the WP did not contest.

Mr Low is a member of the WP media team and secretarial assistant to incumbent Sengkang GRC MP Louis Chua, and started volunteering with the party in 2020.

A staff product manager at a global financial technology firm, he was unveiled on April 18 as a WP candidate but the party did not disclose then where he would contest.

Mr Andre Low is a member of the WP media team and secretarial assistant to incumbent Sengkang GRC MP Louis Chua.ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
His PAP opponent, Mr Ng, 56, arrived at around 10.55am at Deyi Secondary and waved to supporters before entering the nomination centre.

Mr Ng made his political debut at the 2015 GE, where he won as part of a PAP team in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC. A former chief of defence force, Mr Ng had previously been appointed education minister for schools and second minister for transport. In 2018, he was elected NTUC chief, a position he held while he was minister in the Prime Minister’s Office.


At the 2020 GE, he was voted out after PAP lost the then new Sengkang GRC to the WP, but retained his role as Labour chief.

Mr Ng had earlier said that he was familiar with the Seletar, Jalan Kayu and Fernvale areas, as he “grew up” there when he flew with the Singapore Youth Flying Club during junior college and later with the air force.

Jalan Kayu, which has 29,565 voters, was carved out of Ang Mo Kio GRC after the latest electoral boundaries review.

 

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GE2025: Rematch between PAP and PSP in West Coast-Jurong West GRC​

In the 2020 General Election, the PAP team led by National Development Minister Desmond Lee won the constituency in its previous form – West Coast GRC – with 51.68 per cent of the vote against PSP.ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

Michelle Ng
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE – One of the key constituencies to watch in the 2025 General Election, West Coast-Jurong West GRC, will see a rematch between PAP and PSP, with National Development Minister Desmond Lee facing off with former PAP stalwart Tan Cheng Bock.

The People’s Action Party team was confirmed on April 23 at the Nan Hua High School nomination centre to include Mr Lee, 48, who is the anchor minister for the GRC, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Finance and Education Shawn Huang, 42, and three-term MP Ang Wei Neng, 58.

Rounding out the slate are two first-time candidates – orthopaedic surgeon Hamid Razak, 39, and lawyer Cassandra Lee, 33.

They are up against opposition Progress Singapore Party’s A-team, which includes its top three leaders Dr Tan, 84, party chief Leong Mun Wai, 65, and vice-chair Hazel Poa, 54.

The other two candidates are first-timers – head of packaged food and business development Sumarleki Amjah, 53, and in-house legal counsel Sani Ismail, 49.

In the 2020 General Election, PAP won the constituency in its previous form – West Coast GRC – with 51.68 per cent of the vote against a PSP team led by Dr Tan. It was the narrowest win for the ruling party in the 2020 election.

Mr Leong and Ms Poa were part of the PSP team that lost marginally, while Mr Lee and Mr Ang were part of the PAP team that won.

The five-member constituency has since had its boundaries significantly redrawn, absorbing some 41,000 voters from Jurong GRC – one of PAP’s best-performing constituencies. It ceded estates in HarbourFront and Sentosa to Radin Mas SMC, and Dover and Telok Blangah estates to Tanjong Pagar GRC.

Candidates for Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, Pioneer SMC and Jurong Central SMC were also confirmed at Nan Hua, one of nine nomination centres for this election, on April 23.

At the newly formed Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu will helm the PAP team which includes Minister of State for Law and Transport Murali Pillai, 57, and Minister of State for Health and Digital Development and Information Rahayu Mahzam, 44.

The five-member team includes political newcomer David Hoe, 37, and Mr Lee Hong Chuang, 54, who contested the Hougang seat in the 2015 and 2020 elections.

Mr Hoe is the director of philanthropy at The Majurity Trust, while Mr Lee is the former branch chairman of the PAP’s Hougang division.

Opposition Red Dot United (RDU) is contesting the five-member constituency, with a team consisting of two candidates with political experience – entrepreneur and author Liyana Dhamirah, 38, who was an RDU candidate for Jurong GRC in 2020, and waste management company director Osman Sulaiman, 50, who ran on the Reform Party’s ticket in 2011 and 2015, and was a Singapore People’s Party candidate in 2020.

The RDU team is rounded out by contemporary artist Benjamin Puah, 48; marketing agency director Marcus Neo, 33; and principal software engineer Harish Mohanadas, 39.

At Pioneer SMC, PAP’s labour unionist Patrick Tay, who has represented the single-seat ward since 2020, will face off PSP’s Stephanie Tan, 37, who is a full-time homemaker.

PAP’s Xie Yao Quan, 40, will contest the newly formed Jurong Central SMC, having served the ward since 2020 as Jurong GRC MP, against RDU’s Kala Manickam, 57, an educator and former Singapore Armed Forces officer.

RDU had previously said piano teacher Emily Woo would be its candidate in Jurong Central, but Ms Woo was on April 23 instead put forward as part of the RDU slate contesting Holland-Bukit Timah GRC.

 

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GE2025: DPM Gan to face off against WP’s Harpreet in battle for Punggol, now an election hot spot​

DPM Gan Kim Yong will lead the PAP against a WP team helmed by senior counsel Harpreet Singh for the new Punggol GRC.ST PHOTOS: KEVIN LIM

Ang Qing
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE - Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong, in a surprise move, is leading the PAP against a WP team helmed by senior counsel Harpreet Singh for the new Punggol GRC.

Ending days of speculation leading up to Nomination Day on April 23, Mr Gan, 66, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry, was confirmed as the anchor minister of the four-member PAP team.

Mr Gan, who had been expected to lead the PAP team in Chua Chu Kang, now joins Dr Janil Puthucheary, 52, Senior Minister of State for Digital Development and Information and Health; Ms Sun Xueling, 45, Minister of State for Home Affairs and Social and Family Development; and National Trades Union Congress assistant secretary-general Yeo Wan Ling, 48.

The switch was one of a series of surprises on April 23, which saw Manpower Minister Tan See Leng move from Marine Parade GRC to Chua Chu Kang GRC, taking over from Mr Gan.

Apart from Mr Singh, 59, who has been dubbed the WP’s “star catch”, the other members of his party’s Punggol slate are new faces Alexis Dang, 39, senior director of publisher business development at an advertising tech firm; Ms Siti Alia Abdul Rahim Mattar, 43, legal counsel; and Mr Jackson Au, 35, senior manager of corporate affairs and marketing with the London Stock Exchange Group.

The WP pulled off a surprise by diverting its big names to Punggol and Tampines and not fielding a team for Marine Parade, contrary to what some had expected.

In an interview, WP chief Pritam Singh, along with his team contesting Aljunied GRC, said they seek the “understanding and forbearance of residents” for not contesting Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.

“It doesn’t mean we are gone. We will continue our work there after the general election,” he said.

“We are a small political party. We try and put our best foot forward when we have to fight an election campaign, and this is the strategy we have taken for this election.”

The closely guarded slates for the PAP and the WP were made known at the nomination centre in Yusof Ishak Secondary School in Punggol.

Addressing supporters, Mr Gan said the election will be about Singapore’s future. “We are facing challenges, our economy and our jobs are at stake, but we believe that if we work together, work as a team, we will overcome these challenges.”

He told media later: “I am new to the Punggol GRC, but I must promise you that I’m a very fast learner, and I will learn as fast as I can.”

Dr Janil said the PAP team will bring good jobs to the Punggol Digital District, deal with the transport issues in Punggol and keep the estate clean and well maintained.

Mr Singh, who was greeted by loud cheers, said it was a “privilege of a lifetime” for himself and his fellow candidates to step up and run for the election in Punggol GRC.

He called for greater affordability, a better education system, fairer politics and “a Parliament where your voice is heard, not just yes men”.

In Punggol GRC, more than half of its over 120,000 voters are estimated to be working adults aged between 21 and 45. These figures are based on ST’s analysis using Department of Statistics data dated June 2024.

Millennial and Gen Z voters out-represent other age groups in the GRC by a margin of over 10 percentage points.

Punggol West SMC is the only part of Punggol that the WP had contested before. Its candidate Tan Chen Chen took 39.02 per cent of the vote there in the 2020 General Election against Ms Sun.

In all, Punggol GRC combines 96,825 voters from the former Pasir-Ris-Punggol GRC with 26,732 voters from the single-member Punggol West constituency, for a total of 123,557 voters.

Sengkang GRC​

Meanwhile, the WP Sengkang team comprising incumbent MPs He Ting Ru, 41, Jamus Lim, 49, and Louis Chua, 37, along with new face Abdul Muhaimin Abdul Malik, 36, successfully confirmed their candidacy.

Mr Muhaimin is a senior property manager at Aljunied-Hougang Town Council. He has been active in the Compassvale ward of Sengkang GRC since 2023, organising home visits, Meet-the-People Sessions and community outreach activities.

Speaking to supporters hoisting flags emblazoned with the WP’s logo of a hammer, Ms He said: “We, the Workers’ Party team, have been honoured to share in your joy, your tears, and your fears.

“But the journey does not end here.”

Workers’ Party candidates for Sengkang GRC (from left) Mr Jamus Lim, Ms He Ting Ru, Mr Abdul Muhaimin Abdul Malik and Mr Louis Chua, arriving at the Yusof Ishak Secondary School nomination centre on April 23.ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
The WP is up against the PAP’s team led by former Senior Minister of State for Transport and Health Lam Pin Min, the only remaining candidate from the ruling party’s Sengkang slate in the 2020 election.

Dr Lam is joined by new faces Theodora Lai, 39, co-founder of deep tech venture capital firm Moringa Ventures; Associate Professor Elmie Nekmat, 43, who teaches communications and new media at the National University of Singapore; and Mrs Bernadette Giam, 38, director of Creative Eateries, a local food and beverage company.

They arrived to whistles, cheers and applause from dozens of PAP supporters, which had showed up with clappers.

Mrs Giam, the last of the PAP’s Sengkang candidates to speak, asked in Tamil for people to please vote for the People’s Action Party.

“Team Sengkang is deeply committed to building an inclusive community. That’s why I took the time to say a few words in Tamil – with the kind guidance of several dedicated activists who helped coach me,” she told The Straits Times.

In the 2020 General Election, a team of political newcomers comprising Ms He, Mr Chua, Associate Professor Lim and Ms Raeesah Khan won 52.12 per cent of the vote, beating the PAP’s line-up of three political office holders and one newcomer, lawyer Raymond Lye.

While Sengkang GRC has not grown as significantly as other places, it has become the largest four-member constituency with 126,641 voters, as at February 2025.

This is largely due to new public housing projects – such as the 2,500-unit Rivervale Shores – and new condominium developments.

About 30 per cent of residents in Sengkang are working adults aged between 26 and 45, and 28 per cent are between 46 and 65.

 

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GE2025: Ang Mo Kio GRC to see three-cornered fight for the first time​

Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong will lead the PAP team against challengers from the Singapore United Party (top right) and People’s Power Party.ST PHOTOS: SHINTARO TAY, ELISHA TUSHARA

Ho Ai Li
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE - The general election is happening at a difficult time, with many problems ahead that will affect Singaporeans’ lives, jobs, families and futures, said Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong in a speech at the Deyi Secondary School nomination centre on April 23.

“Vote for the team you can trust so that we can work with you to keep Singapore safe, to move it forward and to secure a brighter future for all of us,” added SM Lee, who was flanked by his PAP team members contesting in Ang Mo Kio GRC.

PAP newcomer Jasmin Lau, 42, and Mr Victor Lye, 63 – who was part of the losing PAP teams in Aljunied GRC in the last two elections – also gave brief speeches. The team also includes incumbent Ang Mo Kio GRC MPs Darryl David, 54, and Nadia Ahmad Samdin, 35.

The largest of the 18 GRCs with 161,235 electors, Ang Mo Kio GRC will be contested by three parties for the first time since it was created in 1991.

The incumbent PAP team led by SM Lee, 73, is going up against the Singapore United Party (SUP) and the People’s Power Party (PPP).

For the SUP, its Ang Mo Kio slate includes the party’s secretary-general Andy Zhu, 42, and Ms Noraini Yunus, 57, who both contested in the GRC under the Reform Party (RP) banner in the 2020 General Election. The other members are party chairman Ridhuan Chandran, 53, flight attendant Nigel Ng, 39, and Dr Vincent Ng, 52, who was part of the National Solidarity Party team that stood in Tampines GRC in 2020.


In a speech after the announcement of candidates, Mr Zhu said: “We are dedicated to building a more just and equitable Singapore. We will do this together with the ruling party.”

The PPP, which is led by veteran opposition politician Goh Meng Seng – who is helming the Tampines GRC team – will contest in Ang Mo Kio for the first time.

Its line-up in the constituency comprises party treasurer William Lim, 47, retired civil servant Martinn Ho, 64, safety coordinator Thaddeus Thomas, 43, IT engineer Samuel Lee, 33, and horticulturist Heng Zheng Dao, 24.

Asked why the party decided to run in the GRC, Mr Lim said: “We want to ask the residents of Ang Mo Kio what has Mr Lee Hsien Loong done in the past 20 years. That is why we are here, no matter whether the other opposition parties are coming.”

Traditionally a stronghold for the PAP, Ang Mo Kio GRC was uncontested until 2006, when the PAP defeated a Workers’ Party (WP) team.

In the last three general elections, the PAP won by comfortable margins against the RP. In the last contest in 2020, the PAP team won with 71.91 per cent of the valid votes against the RP’s 28.09 per cent.

SM Lee, who stepped down in May 2024 after 20 years as Prime Minister, has represented the Teck Ghee ward in the GRC for 41 years, having been first elected to Parliament in 1984.

At the Deyi Secondary School nomination centre, supporters braved the rain to cheer on their candidates. Some PAP and WP supporters even took refuge from the rain under the party banners that they had brought with them.

Among the PAP supporters seen at the school were SM Lee’s wife, Madam Ho Ching, former Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Ang Hin Kee as well as Ms K. Thanaletchimi, president of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

The parents of PAP candidate Lau, a former senior civil servant, were outside the school in the morning to cheer their daughter on. Mr Lau Kwok Cheong, 75, said he wanted to tell his daughter: “Jasmin, your mother and I are here to support you and wish you all the best.”

Ms Lau was greeted with a hug by her mother, Ms Lim Swee Eng, 69, when she arrived at the school with the other PAP candidates later.

WP member and former MP Png Eng Huat was spotted among the supporters at Deyi Secondary. The 63-year-old businessman, who stepped down as MP for Hougang SMC before the 2020 General Election, said it was “a refreshing change to be among the supporters this time”.

 

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GE2025: Tan See Leng moves out of Marine Parade to helm PAP team in Chua Chu Kang GRC​

PAP Chua Chu Kang GRC candidates (second from left) Tan See Leng, Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim, Choo Pei Ling and Jeffrey Siow meeting PSP candidate Lawrence Pek (in red) at Jurong-Pioneer Junior College nomination centre on April 23.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH

Hariz Baharudin
Apr 23, 2025


SINGAPORE - In a surprise move, Manpower Minister Tan See Leng has moved from Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC to helm the PAP team in Chua Chu Kang GRC.

Dr Tan, 60, replaces Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong as the anchor for the four-member PAP team. DPM Gan has been redeployed to lead the PAP team in the new Punggol GRC against the WP.

Joining Dr Tan on the PAP slate are incumbent MP and lawyer Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim, 44, and two first-time candidates: veteran former civil servant Jeffrey Siow, 46, and neuroscientist Choo Pei Ling, 38.

After an appearance at the PAP Mountbatten branch in the morning of April 23, Dr Tan later turned up at the Jurong Pioneer Junior College nomination centre – which suggested that he would be contesting Chua Chu Kang GRC.

He leads the PAP into battle against a PSP team comprising former Singapore Manufacturing Federation secretary-general Lawrence Pek, 55; technology lawyer Wendy Low, 48; PSP second vice-chairman and training consultant A’bas Kasmani, 71; and investment specialist S. Nallakaruppan, 60, who previously contested Nee Soon GRC in 2020.

In the last general election, the PAP secured Chua Chu Kang GRC with 58.64 per cent of the vote against the PSP.

PSP’s Chua Chu Kang GRC candidates (from left) S. Nallakaruppan, A’bas Kasmani, Wendy Low and Lawrence Pek.ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Speaking to the crowd at Jurong Pioneer Junior College, Dr Tan thanked Chua Chu Kang residents for the opportunity to serve them.

“I will do my level best for each and every one of you,” he said.

PSP’s Ms Low told the crowd at the nomination centre that many residents have spent the past few years worrying about job losses.

“Your doors are closed, but we see you and we hear you,” she said. “But today, that door is open because we are here. We are your alternative, and we are your choice.”

Slates in two other constituencies were also confirmed at the nomination centre.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong leads the PAP team in Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC, where he once again faces the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) in a straight fight.

The Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC slate remains unchanged from 2020 and comprises PM Wong, 52; Senior Minister of State for Defence and Manpower Zaqy Mohamad, 50; North West District Mayor Alex Yam, 43; and Ms Hany Soh, 37.

PAP Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC candidates (from left) Alex Yam, Zaqy Mohamad, Lawrence Wong and Hany Soh in the hall at Jurong-Pioneer Junior College nomination centre on April 23.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
Addressing the residents of Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC, PM Wong said: “You know us well – we have walked this journey with you since the GRC was formed. Please vote for us again. We will do our best to improve your life.”

PM Wong asked voters to support PAP teams in constituencies across Singapore, adding that in a turbulent world, there is much at stake in the upcoming election.

“Your vote will determine your future and your children’s future,” he added.

SDP’s team comprises party organising secretary Jufri Salim, 41; theatre director Alec Tok, 60; Wake Up Singapore founder Ariffin Iskandar Sha Ali Akbar, 27; and Dr Gigene Wong, 59.

SDP’s Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC candidates (from second left) Gigene Wong, Jufri Salim, Alec Tok and Ariffin Iskandar Sha Ali Akbar.ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI
Mr Tok told the crowd that the SDP has contested in Marsiling-Yew Tee for three elections in a row, and called for residents to support them.

“We are ready. Ready to run your town council with the expertise that we have gained over the years, ready to carry your voices into parliament, and ready to be a leading advocate for a more humane, more compassionate Singapore that is more fair,” he said.

In the 2020 election, the PAP won Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC with 63.18 per cent of the vote, outperforming its national average of 61.24 per cent.

There will be a contest in the newly carved-out Bukit Gombak SMC, with PAP’s Low Yen Ling, 50, facing veteran technologist Harish Pillay, 65, from the PSP.

Ms Low, who is Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry as well as Culture, Community and Youth, is an incumbent MP in Chua Chu Kang GRC. Mr Pillay had contested Tanjong Pagar GRC under the PSP banner in the same election.

• Additional reporting by: Angelica Ang, Osmond Chia, Lee Li Ying, Kolette Lim, Teo Kai Xiang and Tan Tam Mei

 

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GE2025: Political parties can hold rallies between April 24 and May 1​

WP and PAP supporters at Yusof Ishak Secondary School during Nomination Day on April 23.ST PHOTO: LIM YAOHUI

Elaine Lee
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE – Election rallies may be held from April 24 to May 1, the police said in a statement on April 23.

With the exception of lunchtime rallies – which can only be held between 12pm and 3pm – all other rallies can take place either from 10am to 1pm or from 7pm to 10pm.

For school sites, weekday rallies are restricted to the 7pm to 10pm slot. The 10am to 1pm slot for school sites will be available on weekends and public holidays.

Details of the approved election rallies will be announced a day before each rally, after the permit application closes.

The Police Elections Permit Office will be implementing block balloting for contested electoral divisions during the final nights of the campaigning period.

As the final nights tend to be more popular, block balloting will ensure that all political parties and candidates have the chance to hold an election rally near Polling Day.

For each electoral division, the number of days set aside for block balloting depends on the number of parties contesting in that division.

For lunchtime election rally sites, block balloting will take place on the last three working days before Cooling-off Day.

On Polling Day, from the close of polls at 8pm on May 3 until 30 minutes after the announcement of the last result of the 2025 General Election, electoral candidates, their supporters, and members of the public may gather at approved assembly centres to await the results.

List of rally sites​

• Bukit Gombak SMC: Bukit Gombak Stadium
• Bukit Panjang SMC: Beacon Primary School
• Hougang SMC: Anderson Serangoon Junior College
• Jalan Kayu SMC: Fern Green Primary School
• Jurong Central SMC: Jurong East Stadium
• Kebun Baru SMC: Mayflower Secondary School
• Marymount SMC: Catholic High School
• Mountbatten SMC: Home of Athletics
• Pioneer SMC: Jurong West Stadium
• Potong Pasir SMC: St. Andrew’s Junior College
• Queenstown SMC: Queensway Secondary School
• Radin Mas SMC: Gan Eng Seng Primary School
• Sembawang West SMC: Evergreen Primary School
• Tampines Changkat SMC: Field at Tampines Street 22
• Yio Chu Kang SMC: Ang Mo Kio Secondary School
• Aljunied GRC: Field at the junction of Defu Ave 1 and Defu Lane 10; Serangoon Stadium
• Ang Mo Kio GRC: Field at the junction of Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2 and Ang Mo Kio Ave 5; Yio Chu Kang Stadium
• Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC: Beatty Secondary School; Bishan Stadium
• Chua Chu Kang GRC: Chua Chu Kang Secondary School; Hard Court along Choa Chu Kang Ave 4, beside Concord Primary School
• East Coast GRC: Bedok Stadium; Victoria Junior College
• Holland-Bukit Timah GRC: National Junior College; School of Science and Technology, Singapore
• Jalan Besar GRC: Northlight School; Jalan Besar Stadium
• Jurong East-Bukit Batok GRC: Field at Boon Lay Way, next to Chinese Garden MRT; Bukit View Secondary School
• Marsiling-Yew Tee GRC: Choa Chu Kang Stadium; Woodlands Stadium
• Nee Soon GRC: Field along Yishun Central, next to Futsal Arena @ Yishun; Yishun Stadium
• Pasir Ris-Changi GRC: Meridian Secondary School; Tampines Meridian Junior College
• Punggol GRC: Field opposite Blk 670 Edgefield Plains MSCP; Yusof Ishak Secondary School
• Sembawang GRC: Field along Woodlands Ave 12, near Advanced Semiconductor Materials; Hard Court and Field beside Sun Plaza
• Sengkang GRC: Field along Anchorvale Crescent, next to The Vales Condominium; North Vista Secondary School
• Tampines GRC: Field beside Tampines Concourse Bus Interchange; Temasek Junior College
• Tanjong Pagar GRC: Delta Hockey Pitch; MOE (Evans) Stadium
• West Coast-Jurong West GRC: Clementi Stadium; Field at West Coast Park, beside Carpark No. 3
• Lunchtime rallies: Promenade area beside UOB Plaza; The Lawn at Marina Bay

List of assembly centres​

Electoral candidates, their supporters, and members of the public may gather at approved assembly centres to await the results.PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE

Election rallies may be held from April 24 to May 1.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

GE2025: Teo Chee Hean, Heng Swee Keat among 20 PAP MPs who have stepped down​

Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean (left) and DPM Heng Swee Keat will not be contesting in the 2025 General Election.ST PHOTOS: JOYCE LIM, TARYN NG
Hariz Baharudin and Kok Yufeng
Apr 23, 2025


SINGAPORE – There are 20 PAP MPs who will not be contesting in the 2025 General Election, including Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean, and Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat.

Besides SM Teo and DPM Heng, other senior office-holders who have stepped down included Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen, and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Education and Foreign Affairs Maliki Osman.

Senior Minister of State for Transport and Sustainability and the Environment Amy Khor and Senior Minister of State for Defence Heng Chee How are also not standing for re-election.

Long-serving backbenchers who have retired include four-term MPs Lim Wee Kiak and Lim Biow Chuan, and three-term MPs Sitoh Yih Pin, Gan Thiam Poh and Foo Mee Har. There are also five one-term MPs who were not on the PAP’s slate of candidates at the close of Nomination Day on April 23.

SM Teo, who entered politics in 1992 and was anchor minister for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, had earlier said he would not be standing in the newly formed Pasir Ris-Changi GRC, but stopped short of saying he would retire.

On April 23, he told The Straits Times at the Yusof Ishak Secondary School nomination centre that he would not be standing as an MP, and that he has not thought about what he will do next.


“The most important thing now is to give Prime Minister Lawrence Wong the strongest possible team, to help take us through these turbulent times and into the future,” he said.

DPM Heng, meanwhile, was the subject of much interest in the lead-up to Nomination Day, as the People’s Action Party did not confirm who it would field in the East Coast. Speculation was that he could be moved to another constituency, or he could step away from politics altogether. His first election had been in 2011, in Tampines GRC.

About an hour after nominations closed, DPM Heng said in a Facebook post that he would not be running in the 2025 General Election as he believed “now is the right time to make way for a new team of capable individuals who are well placed to serve Singapore”.

He added that PM Wong had won Singaporeans’ trust, and had grown in confidence and stature, and he called on Singaporeans to give the Prime Minister a strong mandate to lead Singapore.


In a Facebook post after Nomination Day proceedings, PM Wong paid tribute to DPM Heng and SM Teo, calling them giants in public service who had dedicated their entire careers to serving Singapore and Singaporeans.

Both men could have continued serving, but chose to step aside to make way for leadership renewal, he added.

“Without Swee Keat and Chee Hean, Singapore would not have been able to achieve all that it has over these years. If I am able to take Singapore forward from here, it is because of leaders like them – who worked tirelessly to lay such strong and enduring foundations,” said PM Wong.

ST had earlier reported that about 20 PAP MPs were expected to retire ahead of the 2025 General Election, after the ruling party announced that it would field 32 new faces at the polls. But of the 20, only 11 had announced their intention to retire, while the rest had left the door open to being fielded elsewhere.

The 20 included five one-term MPs: Mr Mohd Fahmi Aliman, Mr Derrick Goh, Ms Ng Ling Ling, Ms Carrie Tan and Mr Don Wee.

While the PAP typically retires between a quarter and a third of its serving MPs at each election, there have been relatively few legislators who have stepped down after completing only one term.

After the 2020 General Election, Mr Fahmi was appointed as Mayor of South East District. The other four were backbenchers.

MPs who served two terms and have retired are: Ms Cheryl Chan, Mr Chong Kee Hiong, Mr Louis Ng and Dr Tan Wu Meng.

Beyond the senior office-holders, the retiring MP with the most political experience is Mr Heng Chee How, who fought his first election in 1997 in Hougang SMC, against WP stalwart Low Thia Khiang. Mr Low won with 58.02 per cent of the votes.

Mr Heng was part of the PAP team that took Jalan Besar GRC in 2001.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Surprise moves by heavyweights, multi-cornered fights: 5 highlights from Nomination Day for GE2025​

Members of the public at Kong Hwa School, one of the nine nomination centres, on April 23.ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE

Danson Cheong
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE - Candidates from 11 political parties filed their papers at nine nomination centres across the island on April 23, kicking off the campaign for Singapore’s 14th General Election.

With the political chessboard in place, the nine-day campaign period kicked off once nomination papers were filed. Singaporeans will head to the polls on May 3, after Cooling-off Day on May 2.

Here are the key highlights from Nomination Day.

1. Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC walkover​

The PAP team – comprising Speaker of Parliament Seah Kian Peng, Minister of State for Home Affairs Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim, Ms Tin Pei Ling, and political newcomers Diana Pang and Goh Pei Ming – will be part of Singapore’s 15th Parliament after the GRC was uncontested by the opposition.


At the last polls, WP made a play for Marine Parade GRC, but in 2025, in what was a last-minute Nomination Day surprise, the WP did not field a team to contest the newly formed Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC.

This is the first walkover in a general election since 2011, when Tanjong Pagar GRC went uncontested and the PAP won in a walkover.

2. Surprise moves by heavyweights​

The ruling PAP made a surprise move by diverting Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong from Chua Chu Kang GRC, fielding him in Punggol GRC instead.

Mr Gan leads the PAP team that also comprises Dr Janil Puthucheary, Ms Sun Xueling and Ms Yeo Wan Ling.

DPM Gan Kim Yong was moved from Chua Chu Kang GRC to lead the PAP team in Punggol GRC.ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
Meanwhile, Manpower Minister Tan See Leng moved from Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC to replace Mr Gan in Chua Chu Kang.

The split-second switch-up came at the last minute, after Dr Tan was seen at 9.30am at PAP’s Mountbatten branch, where the Marine Parade-Braddell Heights team met earlier in the morning.

Manpower Minister Tan See Leng moved from Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC to replace DPM Gan Kim Yong in Chua Chu Kang.ST PHOTO: JASON QUAH
The WP also moved Mr Faisal Manap, 49, one of its incumbent Aljunied GRC MPs, to lead its team in Tampines GRC.

3. Punggol - the electoral contest to watch​

Punggol GRC is shaping up to be the electoral contest to watch at 2025’s polls.

The WP chose to field one of its “star catches”, senior counsel Harpreet Singh Nehal, as part of its Punggol slate, along with its other new faces, Mr Jackson Au, Ms Siti Alia Abdul Rahim Mattar and Ms Alexis Dang.

The WP’s Punggol GRC team comprises (from left) Ms Siti Alia Abdul Rahim Mattar, Mr Jackson Au, Ms Alexis Dang and Mr Harpreet Singh Nehal.ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
The PAP, likely anticipating a tough fight, moved Mr Gan to Punggol GRC to bolster its chances.

Before Nomination Day, pundits tipped East Coast GRC to emerge as one of the hottest election battlegrounds, predicting that the WP would field one of its big names in the constituency.

The WP team in East Coast is led by former Non-Constituency MP Yee Jenn Jong, 60. The WP will face off against a PAP team led by Culture, Community and Youth Minister Edwin Tong, 55.

The WP’s East Coast GRC candidates (from left) Nathaniel Koh, Sufyan Mikhail Putra, Paris V. Parameswari, Yee Jenn Jong and Jasper Kuan.ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM

4. Political veterans retire​

Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean and Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat are retiring from politics.

Both men were seen at nomination centres in the morning, but were not fielded as candidates.


Mr Teo first entered politics when he was part of a PAP team that contested and won a by-election in Marine Parade GRC in 1992.

Meanwhile, Mr Heng made his political debut in the 2011 General Election as part of the five-member PAP team contesting Tampines GRC.

5. Multi-cornered fights​

Tampines GRC, Sembawang GRC and Ang Mo Kio GRC, as well as Radin Mas SMC and Potong Pasir SMC, will have multi-cornered fights.

In Tampines GRC, the PAP team will face off against the WP, National Solidarity Party (NSP) and People’s Power Party (PPP) in a four-cornered fight.

Social and Family Development Minister Masagos Zulkifli, 62, helms the Tampines GRC team that also comprises Senior Minister of State for Manpower and Sustainability and the Environment Koh Poh Koon, 53, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Transport and Sustainability and the Environment Baey Yam Keng, 54, and two new faces – former chief of army David Neo, 47, and Dr Charlene Chen, 43, an assistant professor of marketing at Nanyang Technological University.

Social and Family Development Minister Masagos Zulkifli helms the PAP’s Tampines GRC team.ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
The WP is fielding party vice-chairman Faisal Manap, 49, Mr Jimmy Tan, 53, co-founder of industrial equipment supply firm Immanuel Engineering, Institute of Mental Health senior principal clinical psychologist Ong Lue Ping, 48, former diplomat Eileen Chong, 33, and Mr Michael Thng, 37, co-founder of technology start-up Showdrop.

The WP is fielding (from left) Mr Faisal Manap, Mr Michael Thng, Ms Eileen Chong, Dr Ong Lue Ping and Mr Jimmy Tan in Tampines GRC.PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO
The NSP is fielding party president Reno Fong, 56, party vice-president Mohd Ridzwan Mohammad, 63, assistant secretary-general Eugene Yeo, 49, financial planner Zee Phay, 32, and Mr Thamilselvan Karuppaya, 57, who is self-employed.

The NSP’s Tampines GRC candidates (from left) Mohd Ridzwan Mohammad, Reno Fong and Thamilselvan Kurappaya arriving at Poi Ching School on April 23.ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
The PPP is fielding a slate comprising secretary-general Goh Meng Seng, 55, party chairman Derrick Sim, 44, landscaping executive Vere Nathan, 26, green tech firm founder Peter Soh, 65, and entrepreneur Arbaah Haroun, 50.

The PPP’s Tampines GRC candidates Goh Meng Seng and Vere Nathan arriving at Poi Ching School on April 23.ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
In Ang Mo Kio GRC, there will be a three-cornered fight between the PAP, Singapore United Party (SUP), and PPP.

The PAP team is led by Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong, 73. It also comprises incumbent Ang Mo Kio GRC MPs Darryl David, 54, and Nadia Ahmad Samdin, 35, as well as newcomer Jasmin Lau, 42, a former senior civil servant; and Mr Victor Lye, 63, the founder of a financial technology firm.

The PAP’s Ang Mo Kio GRC team is led by Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong (centre). It also comprises (from left) newcomer Jasmin Lau, incumbent MPs Darryl David and Nadia Ahmad Samdin (partially hidden), and Mr Victor Lye.ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
As for the SUP, its Ang Mo Kio slate comprises the party’s secretary-general Andy Zhu, 42, Ms Noraini Yunus, 57, party chairman Ridhuan Chandran, 53, flight attendant Nigel Ng, 39, and Dr Vincent Ng, 52.

The SUP’s Ang Mo Kio GRC candidates (from left) Noraini Yunus, Nigel Ng, Andy Zhu, Ridhuan Chandran and Vincent Ng.ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY
The PPP team in Ang Mo Kio comprises party treasurer William Lim, 47, retired civil servant Martinn Ho, 64, safety coordinator Thaddeus Thomas, 43, IT engineer Samuel Lee, 33, and former horticulturalist Heng Zheng Dao, 24.

The PPP’s Ang Mo Kio GRC candidates (from left) Samuel Lee, Martinn Ho, William Lim, Thaddeus Thomas and Heng Zheng Dao.ST PHOTO: ELISHA TUSHARA
Sembawang GRC will also see a three-way fight between the PAP, NSP and Singapore Democratic Party.

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung leads the PAP team, which is made up of incumbent MPs Vikram Nair, 47, and Mariam Jaafar, 48, and two new faces – Mr Gabriel Lam, 42, who is chief operating officer of moving company Shalom International Movers, and Mr Ng Shi Xuan, 35, director of battery company Powermark Battery and Hardware.

Health Minister Ong Ye Kung (centre) leads the PAP’s Sembawang GRC team comprising (from left) Mr Ng Shi Xuan, incumbent MPs Vikram Nair and Mariam Jaafar, and Mr Gabriel Lam.ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN
The SDP team consists of hospital assistant director Bryan Lim, music publisher Surayah Akbar, research institute director James Gomez, entrepreneur Alfred Tan, and Mr Damanhuri Abas, an educational consultant.

The SDP’s Sembawang GRC candidates (from left) Alfred Tan, Damanhuri Abas, Surayah Akbar, Bryan Lim and James Gomez.ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN
The NSP team is led by its secretary-general Spencer Ng and include Mr Raiyian Chia, a private-hire driver and swim coach, Republic Polytechnic lecturer Verina Ong, Republic Polytechnic associate lecturer Mr Lee Wei, and Mr Yadzeth Hairis, who was in NSP’s 2015 and 2020 Sembawang teams.

The NSP’s Sembawang GRC candidates (from left) Raiyian Chia, Verina Ong, Yadzeth Hairis, Spencer Ng and Lee Wei.ST PHOTO: ONG WEE JIN
In the Radin Mas single seat, incumbent PAP MP Melvin Yong will defend his seat against Mr Kumar Appavoo from the People’s Alliance for Reform (PAR) and independent candidate Darryl Lo.

At Radin Mas SMC, PAP’s Melvin Yong is in a three-cornered fight with PAR’s Kumar Appavoo and independent candidate Darryl Lo.ST PHOTOS: BRIAN TEO
In the Potong Pasir single seat, lawyer Alex Yeo takes over the baton from outgoing PAP MP Sitoh Yi Pin, and will face off against PAR secretary-general Lim Tean, and Singapore People’s Party candidate Williiamson Lee.

(From left) The PAP’s Alex Yeo, SPP’s Williiamson Lee and PAR’s Lim Tean will contest the single seat of Potong Pasir SMC.ST PHOTOS: DESMOND WEE
In GE2020, there were two multi-cornered fights in Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC and Pioneer SMC.

 

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DPM Heng, S’pore’s economic czar through the Covid-19 pandemic, retires from politics​

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat was not on any constituency’s slate on Nomination Day on April 23.ST PHOTO: TARYN NG

Goh Yan Han
Apr 23, 2025


SINGAPORE – Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, who guided Singapore through the Covid-19 pandemic as Finance Minister, has retired from politics after 14 years.

Mr Heng, 64, who is also the current chairman of the PAP, was not on any constituency’s slate on Nomination Day on April 23, ending months of speculation over whether he would contest the 2025 General Election.

In a Facebook post after nomination proceedings concluded, he said: “I believe now is the right time to make way for a new team of capable individuals who are well-placed to serve Singapore.”

Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Edwin Tong will succeed DPM Heng as the anchor minister in East Coast GRC. Mr Heng said he was confident that the new team would serve with heart and strength, urging East Coast residents to give them their strong support.

Mr Heng entered politics in 2011 in Tampines GRC, as part of a cohort that would form the core of the PAP’s fourth generation (4G) leadership.

Other candidates introduced at that general election include Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and three Cabinet ministers – Mr Chan Chun Sing, Mr Desmond Lee and Mr Ong Ye Kung.

A Singapore Police Force overseas scholarship holder, he joined the police force after graduating from Cambridge University with a degree in economics and rose to the rank of assistant commissioner.

He joined the administrative service in 1995, and was principal private secretary to then Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew between 1997 and 2000.

Mr Lee later called Mr Heng “one of the best” principal private secretaries he ever had. “He’s the man who saw Singapore through the financial crisis and we recovered faster than other countries,” he also said.

From economics student to czar​

Before politics, Mr Heng honed his policymaking chops as permanent secretary at the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), and later as managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) from 2005 to 2011.

He was credited with successfully steering Singapore’s monetary policy through the 2008 financial crisis, ensuring the Singapore dollar remained stable and the financial sector resilient.

Two key measures the Government rolled out then to support businesses were the Special Risk-Sharing Initiative, which saw the state absorb most of the risk of loans so that there would not be a liquidity crunch, and a Jobs Credit scheme that subsidised wage costs and incentivised firms to retain their workers.

These would become critical policy tools when Mr Heng faced down the Covid-19 pandemic as Finance Minister.

At MTI, he skilfully wrangled benefits as Singapore’s chief negotiator in putting together free trade agreements, especially the ground-breaking 2005 pact with India that was notable for its complexity and range.

Mr Heng said he was asked to stand for elections on a few occasions. The first time was when he was in his 30s, and he declined.

After the global financial crisis, then-Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong and Mr Lee, who was Minister Mentor then, had long sessions with him that spurred his entry into politics in 2011.

“They convinced me that there were changes I could effect as a politician that I could not as a civil servant, and winning public support for doing the right things for Singapore was critical. This is why I agreed to enter politics, and why I continued to serve after my stroke nine years ago, in 2016,” he said.

Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat (left) and his wife Chang Hwee Nee embrace on stage during the opening ceremony of Dad’s Day Out 2019 held on Father’s Day at the OCBC Square of the Singapore Sports Hub on June 16, 2019.PHOTO: ST FILE
Within days of being elected in 2011, Mr Heng was made a full minister with the education portfolio.

A major move early in his tenure as Education Minister was to cease the banding of secondary schools, ending a 20-year practice of spotlighting academic performance ahead of other indicators.

In 2012, he also did away with naming the top scorers in the Primary School Leaving Examination. A year later, the ministry went a step further by not disclosing the highest and lowest scores, which had been listed on every pupil’s result slip since 1982.

The policy of not naming the top scorers also extended to other national examinations: N-level, O-level and A-level exams.

Then Minister for Education Heng Swee Keat (left) and Mrs Stella Tan, MOE Cluster Superintendent (South 2), observing a Primary 2 English lesson at Queenstown Primary School in May 2011. This was Mr Heng’s first school visit as the Education Minister.PHOTO: ST FILE
Mr Heng came to be associated with the slogan “Every school a good school”, which reflected his vision for every school to be good in its own way, and to bring out the best in each child.

After the 2015 General Election, he relinquished the education portfolio and became Finance Minister, a position he held till 2021, when he handed it over to now PM Wong.

During his term as Finance Minister, Mr Heng announced in 2018 that the government would be raising the goods and services tax rate from 7 per cent to 9 per cent some time between 2021 and 2025.

This was later executed in two stages, in 2024 and 2025, after PM Wong took over the finance portfolio.

Harnessing reserves in crisis​

The high-water mark of Mr Heng’s tenure as Finance Minister was the unprecedented five Budgets that he delivered in 2020 that together deployed some $100 billion – a fifth of Singapore’s GDP – in fiscal firepower to support Singaporeans and businesses through the Covid-19 pandemic.

Five weeks after he first went to Parliament to deliver Budget 2020, dubbed the Unity Budget, with $6.4 billion in economic measures, Mr Heng returned to the House on March 26, 2020, to deliver the $48.4 billion Resilience Budget. This was followed by the $5.1 billion Solidarity Budget in April – a day before circuit breaker measures kicked in – and the $33 billion Fortitude Budget in May.

This was followed by two ministerial statements in August and October 2020 that added another $8 billion in support measures, such as an extension to the Job Support Scheme, so that hard-hit sectors like aviation and tourism would benefit from co-payment of workers’ salaries for longer. The two statements are together regarded as 2020’s fifth Budget.

DPM Heng Swee Keat taking his oath during the swearing-in ceremony at Parliament House on July 27, 2020. PHOTO: ST FILE
Within a year, Mr Heng had addressed Parliament nine times to deliver the five Budgets, spending more than 12 hours at the rostrum.

In a December 2020 interview with The Straits Times for a book that chronicled the first two years of Singapore’s battle against the pandemic, Mr Heng said each of the five Budgets was exceptional, given that his team was working on an extremely compressed timeline to roll out necessary support in the face of severe demand and supply shocks.

But the most intense of them was the Resilience Budget, given that it was the largest in size, and involved a $17 billion draw on the reserves, he said.

“We knew that this (pandemic) was going to have a very deep impact, in particular on jobs,” he said.

“We also realised that we would need to support businesses – because if businesses closed, however much we supported workers and the retention of jobs, there would be a problem.”

Once-presumptive leader of 4G team​

In November 2018, Mr Heng was picked to be first assistant secretary-general of the PAP.

The promotion was supposed to answer the pressing question of who would take over from then-prime minister Lee Hsien Loong, who said days after the 2015 General Election that political succession was at the top of his mind.

The process appeared to be on track when Mr Heng was promoted to deputy prime minister in April 2019.

With the prospect of him being Singapore’s fourth prime minister, Mr Heng made a surprise move at GE2020 to East Coast GRC from Tampines GRC, in anticipation of a fierce fight against the Workers’ Party.

The PAP won in East Coast with 53.4 per cent of the vote.

In April 2021, Mr Heng announced that he had decided to step aside as leader of the PAP’s 4G team, a move that up-ended the PAP’s customarily uneventful handover of power.

At a press conference, he said the pandemic was likely to be a prolonged crisis, which meant he would be close to his mid-60s by the time he would take over as prime minister.

In contrast, Singapore’s first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew was 35 when he took on the job, his successor Goh Chok Tong was 49 and SM Lee was 52.

“It is in the best interests of the nation for someone who is younger to tackle the huge challenges ahead,” he said.

“After careful deliberation and discussions with my family, I have decided to step aside as leader of the 4G team so that a younger leader who will have a longer runway can take over.”

SM Lee said Mr Heng had done exceptional work as Minister for Finance, and thanked him for his selfless decision to stand aside.

The withdrawal kicked off an extensive exercise within the PAP to relook its 4G succession plan, and in April 2022 the ruling party picked now-PM Wong as successor.

Architect of S’pore’s long-range plans​

Given his economic grounding and technocratic roots, Mr Heng was often tapped by Singapore’s leadership to chart the country’s next bound of growth and transformation so that it could stay ahead as the world changed.

During the pandemic, he set up the Emerging Stronger Taskforce that comprised leaders from businesses, trade associations and the unions.

Besides pioneering a model for the public and private sectors to rapidly implement solutions to ground problems, the taskforce identified key shifts in a post-pandemic world, such as reconfigured supply chains, changes in consumer preferences and an increased focus on sustainability.

It then recommended specific investment areas for Singapore – including agri-tech, medtech and robotics – which the Future Economy Council (FEC) accepted.

The FEC, which Mr Heng chaired from 2017 to 2023, oversees Singapore’s ongoing economic restructuring through the implementation of sector-specific transformation roadmaps.

Mr Heng’s other roles were Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies from 2020 to 2024, and chair of the National Research Foundation since 2018.

Known for his consultative leadership style, Mr Heng also led multiple national engagement exercises and sought to get more Singaporeans to partner the Government.

These included the 2012 Our Singapore Conversations that engaged over 47,000 Singaporeans on their desired future for the nation, and the Emerging Stronger Conversations (ESC) that took in the pandemic reflections of some 17,000 Singaporeans.

(From left) The PAP candidates Cheng Li Hui, Masagos Zulkifli, Heng Swee Keat, Baey Yam Keng, and Desmond Choo at Poi Ching School during Nomination Day for the 2015 General Election on Sept 1, 2015. PHOTO: ST FILE
In 2022, the 4G leadership initiated Forward Singapore, a new public consultation exercise that built on the ESC.

Among its outcomes were the establishment of the Singapore Government Partnerships Office, which continues Mr Heng’s vision of encouraging more people to come forward to co-create solutions with the Government.

On April 23, PM Wong said he saw firsthand how Mr Heng embraced the ethos of service above self when he worked under Mr Heng in the education and finance ministries.

In his tribute to Mr Heng and Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, who also retired, PM Wong said both men had served Singapore with distinction.


“Without Swee Keat and Chee Hean, Singapore would not have been able to achieve all that it has over these years,” he said.

“If I am able to take Singapore forward from here, it is because of leaders like them – who worked tirelessly to lay such strong and enduring foundations.”

SM Lee also expressed his gratitude to Mr Heng, whom he said had a natural empathy for others and exemplified the spirit of public service.

He added that Mr Heng made the “selfless decision” to step aside as leader of the 4G team, but continued to contribute actively in Cabinet.

“For that, I will long be grateful,” said SM Lee.

Mr Heng was among the 20 PAP MPs who retired ahead of the polls.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Election candidates can apply for post-election vehicular processions from April 23 to May 3​

The permit will cost $50 and applications can be made at the respective police division headquarters corresponding to the electoral divisions.PHOTO: ST FILE

Eileen Ng
Apr 23, 2025

SINGAPORE - Election candidates and their agents can apply for police permits from April 23 to May 3 to conduct post-election vehicular processions to thank voters and constituents.

However, the police said on April 23 that processions can be held only after the May 3 Polling Day; that is, from May 4 to May 10 between 7am and 10pm.

The permit will cost $50.

Applications for the permits can be made at the Compliance Management Offices at the respective police divisional headquarters which corresponds to the electoral divisions.

The Compliance Management Offices will be open from 8.30am to 6pm on weekdays only.

Applicants will be notified to collect the permit in person when it is ready, the police said.


The police said the issuance of the permits is subjected to a range of conditions.

This includes the number of vehicles used for any procession, which shall not exceed the number specified in the permit.

The police also said the person to whom a permit is granted shall not be absent from the procession without reasonable excuse.

Additionally, the procession shall not deviate from the route or area specified in the permit.

“No singing, music, gongs, drums or music-producing equipment shall be played during the procession unless authorised by the police officer granting the permit,” said the police in a statement.

Similarly, no banners, posters or placards shall be displayed unless authorised by the police officer granting the permit.

The police said vehicles used in the procession should keep moving, unless the driver operating the vehicle is complying with traffic signals or complying with the direction of authorised officers, or undertaking manoeuvres for either personal safety or the safety of other road users.

The police said the vehicles should be driven in a safe manner, taking into account the safety of all passengers.

“The vehicle(s) shall not be driven at a speed exceeding 15kmh when carrying any person who is not in a sitting position on the deck of the vehicle(s),” it said.

It added that all vehicles used in the processions are required to adhere to the registration and technical requirements set out in the Road Traffic Act 1961 and its relevant subsidiary legislation.

Hence, the construction of the vehicle or the nature of the advertisement carried shall not cause danger or obstruct other road users.

“A policy of insurance relating to the vehicle(s) with respect to the death of, or bodily injury to, any person caused by or arising out of the use of the vehicle on a road shall be in force at all times,” the police added.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

GE2025: 92 out of 97 seats to be contested on May 3, walkover in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC​

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A total of 211 candidates filed their papers on Nomination Day. ST PHOTO: SHINTARO TAY

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A five-member PAP team in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC was elected unopposed when nomination proceedings ended at noon.ST PHOTO: DESMOND WEE

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The PAP was the only party to field candidates for all 97 seats in 33 constituencies.ST PHOTO: AZMI ATHNI

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The WP is fighting for 26 seats across eight constituencies.ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG

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The PSP is fielding a scaled-back contingent of 13 candidates in six constituencies.ST PHOTO: MARK CHEONG

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PAP and WP supporters at Yusof Ishak Secondary School nomination centre on April 23.ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
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Linette Lai
Apr 23, 2025


SINGAPORE – Singapore will see 92 out of 97 seats contested in the May 3 general election, following several surprises on Nomination Day, including the first walkover since 2011.

A five-member PAP team in Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC, where the WP was expected to field a team, was elected unopposed when nomination proceedings ended at noon.

Other developments on April 23 included the last-minute redeployment of several heavyweight ministers – among them Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong to the four-member Punggol GRC – and the long-awaited confirmation of the WP’s line-up.

Senior counsel Harpreet Singh Nehal was confirmed as part of the WP’s Punggol GRC team, setting the stage for what looks to be one of the fiercest electoral battlegrounds this year.

Two PAP stalwarts – Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean and Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat – did not appear on any nomination forms and have retired from politics.

A total of 211 candidates filed their papers on Nomination Day. The PAP was the only party to field candidates for all 97 seats in 33 constituencies. Its largest opponent, the WP, is fighting for 26 seats across eight constituencies.


The Progress Singapore Party (PSP), which contested the largest number of seats of any opposition party in 2020, is fielding a scaled-back contingent of 13 candidates in six constituencies.

Prospective candidates and their supporters began gathering at the nine nomination centres on the morning of April 23. The exception was Kong Hwa School, where fewer than 10 WP supporters showed up.

As the clock ticked towards the noon deadline, it became clear that the PAP team for Marine Parade-Braddell Heights GRC would be elected unopposed.


It is the first time any constituency has seen a walkover since 2011, when Tanjong Pagar GRC went uncontested after a team of independents submitted their nomination papers late.

This year, multi-cornered fights will take place in five-member Ang Mo Kio, Sembawang and Tampines GRCs, as well as the single seats of Potong Pasir and Radin Mas.

Tampines is the most hotly contested of the five, with three opposition parties – the WP, National Solidarity Party (NSP) and People’s Power Party (PPP) – set to go up against a PAP team led by Minister for Social and Family Development Masagos Zulkifli.

In Ang Mo Kio, the PPP team will face off against opponents from the PAP and Singapore United Party (SUP), while voters in Sembawang will see the PAP, NSP and Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) on their ballot papers.

Those in Potong Pasir will choose between the ruling party, the People’s Alliance for Reform (PAR) and the Singapore People’s Party (SPP). Finally, the PAP and PAR will both be contesting Radin Mas, along with 28-year-old Darryl Lo, an independent candidate.

The single seat of Mountbatten will be the only one to see a contest between two new faces – the PAP’s Gho Sze Kee and independent candidate Jeremy Tan.

In 2020, the PAP won 61.23 per cent of the popular vote, and was returned to power with 83 out of 93 seats. However, it lost a second GRC – Sengkang – to the WP.

That year, the WP won 10 seats in Aljunied, Sengkang and Hougang. The PSP narrowly lost West Coast to the PAP, and two of its candidates – Mr Leong Mun Wai and Ms Hazel Poa – were subsequently installed as Non-Constituency MPs.