Singapore ruling party takes decisive election win
SINGAPORE—Singapore’s People’s Action Party (PAP) won its 14th successive election on Saturday to extend its unbroken six-decade rule, delivering a strong mandate to its new premier as the city-state braces for economic turbulence from a global trade war.
The PAP, which has ruled since before Singapore’s 1965 independence, won 87 of the 97 parliamentary seats up for grabs, with victories by huge margins in many of the 33 constituencies as the opposition failed to extend gains in previous contests.
The election was a bellwether of the popularity of the PAP amid some signs of disenchantment with its tight grip on power in the Asian financial hub, whose six million people have known no other kind of government.
Though the PAP has consistently won about 90 percent of seats, its share of the popular vote is closely watched as a measure of the strength of its mandate, with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong eager to leave a mark on his first election in charge after one of the PAP’s worst performances on record last time.
Better than 2020
The PAP had yet to be formally declared winner but took 65.57 percent of the vote, according to local media, surpassing the 61.2 percent achieved in the 2020 contest.
The outcome will be seen as a ringing public endorsement of US-educated Wong, 52, who became Singapore’s fourth prime minister last year, promising continuity as well as new blood and a new style of leadership.
Wong must address high living costs and a shortage of housing: persistent problems in one of the world’s most expensive cities, which faces a risk of recession and job losses if its trade-dependent economy takes a hit from the trade war triggered by steep US tariffs.
Though the PAP win maintains the status quo, the margin of victory in most races was significant, with the opposition decimated and PAP candidates winning more than two-thirds of the vote in 18 of 33 constituencies. Like previous elections, Saturday’s was a lopsided affair, with 46 percent of all candidates representing the PAP.
The ruling party ran in all seats, compared to just 26 for the Workers’ Party, which won the 10 seats PAP did not win.
