Singapore, city skyline and The Merlion, dusk
Walter Bibikow | Stone | Getty Images
Singapore will head to the polls on May 3, after President Tharman Shanmugaratnam dissolved the city-state’s parliament on Tuesday.
The Nomination Day will be on April 23, according to the country’s election department.
Prospective candidates will file their election papers on Nomination Day, after which there will be nine days of campaigning and one “cooling-off day” before polling day.
This will be Singapore’s 14th general election since independence, and Lawrence Wong’s first as prime minister. Wong took over from Lee Hsien Loong who had helmed the Singapore government since 2004.
According to local media outlet CNA, the ruling People’s Action Party is expected to be challenged for all 97 parliamentary seats. Voter concerns heading into this election include the cost of living, jobs, as well as unemployment, CNA reported, citing a January survey.
The PAP has governed Singapore since its independence in 1965. In the last general election in 2020, the party won 61.24% of the vote, and captured 83 of the 93 parliamentary seats available.
The election comes at a time of heightened global turmoil, as U.S. president Donald Trump charges ahead with hefty tariffs on friends and foes alike.
Referring to tariffs, Wong said in a ministerial statement on April 8, “We are very disappointed by the U.S. move, especially considering the deep and longstanding friendship between our two countries.”
Singapore on Monday eased its monetary policy for the second straight time, as the city-state sees zero growth this year as a possibility after posting a lower-than-expected GDP expansion of 3.8% for the first quarter.