SINGAPORE, April 24 (Xinhua) -- Singapore officially launched its general election campaign on Wednesday, as political parties nominated their candidates for members of Parliament across 33 constituencies ahead of the May 3 polls.
The ruling People's Action Party (PAP) secured an early win in the Marine Parade-Braddell Heights constituency in eastern Singapore, where no other party fielded candidates. The Workers' Party, which had been expected to contest the seats, withdrew to give its candidates "the best chance of electoral success," according to the party chief Pritam Singh on Facebook.
Several constituencies are set to see multi-cornered contests. In Tampines in eastern Singapore, for instance, three opposition parties are challenging the incumbent PAP team.
Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean and Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, both from the PAP, will not stand in this election. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who leads the PAP team in Marsiling-Yew Tee, said on Facebook that "both could have continued, but they chose to step aside to make way for leadership renewal."
On April 15, Wong advised President Tharman Shanmugaratnam to dissolve the parliament, officially triggering the election process. As parties finalized their candidate slates, Singapore entered a nine-day campaigning period, followed by a cooling-off day on May 2 for voters to reflect on the issues raised.
The PAP, which has governed Singapore for over 60 years, secured 61.24 percent of the vote in the 2020 general election, down from 69.86 percent in 2015. The Workers' Party, the only opposition party to win seats in 2020, expanded its representation from six seats in 2015 to 10 in the last election.
Also on Wednesday, the Singapore Police Force announced the designated sites and approved time slots for election meetings, as well as venues where candidates, supporters, and members of the public may gather to await the results after polls close at 8 p.m. local time (1200 GMT) on May 3. ■