Workers’ Party leader highlights the possibility of postal voting in the presidential election as a precursor to its use in parliamentary elections.
SINGAPORE: In a May 21 Facebook post, Workers’ Party chief Pritam Singh raised the prospect that the upcoming Presidential Election could serve as a “dry run” for mail-in voting, which could later be expanded to parliamentary elections. The post came in light of recent amendments to the Presidential and Parliamentary Election Acts, which include the introduction of postal voting for eligible voters abroad and other electoral changes.
“However, with the majority of our Presidential Elections ironically being walkovers, this remains open to question. (So much for a President needing an electoral mandate to carry out his/her duties, but that is a story for another day!),” remarked Mr Singh, the Leader of the Opposition.
On March 6, Parliament voted to amend Singapore’s election laws to allow eligible overseas voters to mail in their ballots. Although the exact number of Singaporeans living abroad who are eligible to vote remains uncertain, it is estimated that over 200,000 Singaporeans live overseas.
Mr Singh’s comments on mail-in voting were prompted by a conversation he had with a Singaporean working in Sydney, Australia, whom he met while out with Workers’ Party East Coast GRC members for their Hammer Outreach program. During the outreach, the group distributes party publications, and Mr Singh spoke to the man while he was enjoying mee rebus with friends at a hawker centre in Bedok South.
Mr Singh acknowledged that the political influence of Singaporeans living abroad in parliamentary elections remains unknown, but he emphasized that their votes could play a critical role in closely contested constituencies.
“It is no secret that the design of our political system is tilted in favour of the PAP,” Mr Singh wrote, highlighting the frequent changes to electoral boundaries as an example of this. He stressed that the Workers’ Party and other opposition parties continue to keep the political landscape contestable, offering a more balanced representation of Singapore’s political diversity.
Mr Singh urged overseas Singaporeans to verify whether their names are on the Register of Electors and to take steps to ensure they are eligible to vote, adding, “Every vote matters.”
