Significant Increase Ahead of GE2025

In a significant move ahead of the upcoming general election, the Elections Department (ELD) has announced an increase in the maximum allowable campaign spending from $4 to $5 for each registered voter. This adjustment, disclosed on March 27, aims to accommodate the effects of inflation since the last revision in 2015.

Maintaining Fairness in Elections

The law caps the campaign spending to maintain fairness during elections and deter 'money politics.' Candidates must adhere strictly to this limit, as exceeding it could lead to legal ramifications.

Previous Spending Trends

In the General Election 2020, candidates collectively spent over $9 million on their campaigns, with expenditures focusing heavily on traditional advertising methods like posters and online ads. The People’s Action Party (PAP) led the spending spree at $2.63 per voter, followed by the Workers' Party (WP) at $1.21 and the Progress Singapore Party (PSP) at $1.19.

Diversity in Representation

Additionally, the ELD highlighted recent designations by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam regarding group representation constituencies (GRCs). At least one candidate from each group must belong to either the Malay community or other minority groups, ensuring diverse representation.

Changes to GRCs

The Malay community representation remains unchanged from GE2020, encompassing GRCs such as Aljunied and Marine Parade, which will now be known as Marine Parade-Braddell Heights due to boundary adjustments. The list of GRCs needing representation from Indian or other minority groups includes Ang Mo Kio and the newly established Punggol GRC. Significant boundary changes will also see parts of the Jurong and West Coast GRCs forming new constituencies.

The GRC System

The GRC system, implemented in 1988, ensures that minority voices are represented in Parliament. For the upcoming polls, there will be 18 GRCs, an increase from the previous 17.

Rising Voter Eligibility

Voter eligibility has also seen a rise, with approximately 2,758,095 individuals eligible to vote this time—an increase of over 104,000 since April 2020.

Potential Election Dates

While the next general election must occur by November, analysts speculate that Singaporeans might head to the polls as early as mid-year.

Conclusion

Stay tuned for more updates and insights as GE2025 approaches—this election is poised to be one for the history books!