The last time Singapore celebrated elections, was in the midst of a global crisis. That is also true today.
Five years ago, the ruling party was portrayed as the firm hand to guide the nation through the Coronavirus pandemic. The launch is the same this time, only with a different catalyst: the increase of President Trump of the international commercial order.
The Popular Action Party, which has been in power since 1959, improved its vote participation markedly on Saturday, an emphatic victory for a match that had an almost record exhibition in 2020.
There was no doubt that the party would keep the position. But this year’s election was seen as proof of his popularity, because the previous survey was a growing evidence of a desire for a competitive democracy in the city-state.
“People voted for stability,” said Inderjit Singh, a former PAP legislator. “In the context of the commercial war and the tariff problems, the Singapurenses bought the strategy of the PAP, which” we do not want to risk with our votes. “
Singapore’s economy depends largely on international trade, with a commercial relationship to GDP of more than 300 percent, almost five times the global average. Located along the Malacca Strait, one of the world’s main shipping lanes, the port of Singapore is among the busiest in the world.
The PAP won 87 of 97 seats in Parliament and its part of the popular vote at 65.6 percent, from 61.2 percent in the last elections, in 2020. Of the 11 opposition parties, including two independent candidates, only the main opppy, the parliament of workers’ workers, the same number as in the 2020 vote.
The electoral result was a claim for Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who argued that the PAP was the best game in navigating the commercial war and the tensions of the United States-China. He has warned that the rates imposed by the United States will damage Singapore, a nation of almost six million, one of the richest per capita in the world.
“The results would show that the Singapurenses understood the message,” Wong told journalists.
But he added: “There are also many Singapurenses who will continue to have more opposition members in Parliament, and respect that opinion.” Mr. Wong said the workers’ party would be sacrificed two more seats in Parliament, which increases the presence of the party to 12.
The results represented a support of Mr. Wong, who assumed the position last year after the two -decades mandate of Lee Hsien Loong, son of the founding father of Singapore. But they surprised many political analysts who had believed that the opposition was gaining influence in Singapore, with unhappy votes for the Pap’s response to the growing cost of living.
Duration The campaign, the demonstrations for the Workers Party were full. Even so, Pritam Singh, its leader, struggled to ensure the public that this party was not disputing enough seats to form a government, simply that Singapore needed a more balanced political system.
“Like many Singapurenses, I would like to see more solid debates in Parliament, with more representation of several voices,” said Steven Yeong, 54, who has unemployed legs for six months.
Many had believed that Pap’s power in power would weaken because many Singapurenses average say more and more that they no longer feel prosperous. Singapore now has more millionaires than London. But while the average wealth has more than duplicated in the terms of local currencies, the average wealth has fallen 1.8 percent from 2008 to 2023, according to the Swiss Bank UBS.
“My concern is that the government is raising the country, but it is also leaving many people behind,” said Kris Tan, 44, a personal coach.
He said he was worried about the future of his children, particularly for the cost of living.
He said that it was also a group, which, according to him, is becoming more obvious with respect to the higher levels of the government compared to people. “Said the salaries of one million dollars that the country’s ministers earn.
But the Cheriano George, who has written a book about Singapore politics, said: “What this choice shows is that when external threats are so outstanding and dramatic, it makes the Singapore more aware of the fact that the world is already a deceased a deceased.
Since the last elections, the government has reinforced social spending, providing temporary financial support to people who have been fired and offering coupons to help with daily expenses. But he has continued to face the discontent about the increases in the sales tax and the decrease in the affordability of the house, the problems in which the opposition has encountered.
The opposition has widely criticized the PAP to celebrate one of the shortest campaign periods in the world, nine days, and by Gerrymandering when writing the limits of the elections in the districts where they had profits in the previous survey. The PAP rejected the claims, saying that a committee that reviews the electoral limits operates regardless of the government.
