Singaporean by-election, 1992
Encyclopedia
Background and historical significance
This was the first and only by election in a Group Representation ConstituencyGroup Representation Constituency
A Group Representation Constituency is a type of electoral division or constituency in Singapore, the Members of Parliament of which are voted into Parliament as a group...
held in Singapore on 19 December 1992 with the nomination day set at 9 December 1992. The reasons for the then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong
Goh Chok Tong
Goh Chok Tong is the Senior Minister of Singapore and the chairman of the central bank of Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore. He also served as the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore from 28 November 1990 to 12 August 2004, succeeding Lee Kuan Yew, the former Prime...
to hold this by election was due to several reasons:
• He hoped and probably felt the need to secure another fresh, stronger mandate after the 1991 general election
Singaporean general election, 1991
General elections were held in Singapore on 31 August 1991. The result was a victory for the People's Action Party, which won 77 of the 81 seats...
that oversaw the unprecedented loss of four Single Member Constituencies namely Hougang
Hougang Single Member Constituency
Hougang Single Member Constituency is a Single Member Constituency whose borders roughly enclose the town of Hougang, located in the north-eastern area of Singapore. The boundary includes a portion of Hougang and is an opposition held seat with its Member of Parliament the Workers' Party's Yaw...
, Nee Soon Central
Yishun
Yishun, or Nee Soon as it was initially named, is a suburban town in the northern part of Singapore, encompassing the Yishun Planning Area, in the North Region, which includes Yishun New Town and the Nee Soon private residential estate....
, Bukit Gombak
Bukit Gombak
Bukit Gombak is a neighbourhood in the west-central area of the Southeast Asian city-state of Singapore. In the Malay language, bukit means hill and gombak a bunch or collection of something....
on top of Potong Pasir
Potong Pasir Single Member Constituency
Potong Pasir Single Member Constituency is a Single Member Constituency in the central region of Singapore.-Location:The SMC encompasses Potong Pasir, Lorong 8 Toa Payoh and Tannery...
which the People's Action Party
People's Action Party
The People's Action Party is the leading political party in Singapore. It has been the city-state's ruling political party since 1959....
had failed to recover ever since it was lost in the 1984 general election
Singaporean general election, 1984
General elections were held in Singapore on 22 December 1984. The result was a victory for the People's Action Party, which won 77 of the 79 seats, marking the first time since 1963 that they had not won every seat...
.
• Through the by election, Teo Chee Hean
Teo Chee Hean
Teo Chee Hean is a politician from Singapore. A member of the governing People's Action Party , he is currently the country's Deputy Prime Minister, Minister for Home Affairs and Co-ordinating Minister for National Security, and a Member of Parliament for the Pasir Ris-Punggol Group...
, Singapore's current Minister for Defense as well as Deputy Prime Minister, was introduced as new blood to the team, while Lim Chee Onn decided to retire.
• He wanted to keep his promise of allowing WP's
Workers' Party of Singapore
The Workers' Party of Singapore is a centre-left opposition political party in Singapore. The party currently has six elected seats in Parliament, with the party's Secretary-General Low Thia Khiang, Chairman Sylvia Lim, Chen Show Mao, Muhamad Faisal Manap and Pritam Singh serving as Members of...
chief J. B. Jeyaretnam
Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam
Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam was a politician and lawyer from Singapore. He was the leader of the Workers' Party from 1971 to 2001...
to contest an election upon the latter's ten-year ban ending just after the 1991 GE
Singaporean general election, 1991
General elections were held in Singapore on 31 August 1991. The result was a victory for the People's Action Party, which won 77 of the 81 seats...
. Jeyaretnam had also accused the PAP of calling a snap election because it was afraid of him.
Despite how many had expected the return of J. B. Jeyaretnam
Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam
Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam was a politician and lawyer from Singapore. He was the leader of the Workers' Party from 1971 to 2001...
, he did not take part in the election due to multiple corner fights within the opposition camp. This was a speculated reason for one of WP's
Workers' Party of Singapore
The Workers' Party of Singapore is a centre-left opposition political party in Singapore. The party currently has six elected seats in Parliament, with the party's Secretary-General Low Thia Khiang, Chairman Sylvia Lim, Chen Show Mao, Muhamad Faisal Manap and Pritam Singh serving as Members of...
candidate to back out at the very last minute. Also contesting in the by election was leader of Singapore Democratic Party
Singapore Democratic Party
The Singapore Democratic Party is an opposition political party in Singapore.The party was founded in 1980 by Chiam See Tong, who as Secretary-General became the party's first Member of Parliament in 1984 when he was elected as MP for Potong Pasir...
, Chiam See Tong
Chiam See Tong
Chiam See Tong is a politician and lawyer from Singapore. He is the country's longest-serving opposition Member of Parliament . Between 1984 and 2011, he represented the constituency of Potong Pasir in Singapore's Parliament....
, who introduced their "trump card", Chee Soon Juan
Chee Soon Juan
Chee Soon Juan, PhD is a politician and political activist from Singapore. He is currently the leader of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party ....
. It was Chee's first debut then. Singapore Justice Party
Singapore Justice Party
The Justice Party, Singapore is a political party in Singapore.The party has been based mostly in Marine Parade district of Singapore since the party has taken part in general elections after 1988 by fielding its candidates only at Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency...
had also sent their teams with two of them participating once again in the same GRC like they did in 1991
Singaporean general election, 1991
General elections were held in Singapore on 31 August 1991. The result was a victory for the People's Action Party, which won 77 of the 81 seats...
. NSP entered into the fray too, and with the opposition's disunity, Goh's
Goh Chok Tong
Goh Chok Tong is the Senior Minister of Singapore and the chairman of the central bank of Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore. He also served as the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore from 28 November 1990 to 12 August 2004, succeeding Lee Kuan Yew, the former Prime...
team had a strong mandate despite the results dipping slightly lower compared to the 1991 general election
Singaporean general election, 1991
General elections were held in Singapore on 31 August 1991. The result was a victory for the People's Action Party, which won 77 of the 81 seats...
.
Election deposit
The election deposit was set at $6000 per candidate. Similar to previous elections, the election deposit will be forfeited if the particular candidate had failed to secure at least 12.5% or one-eighth of the votes.Results
Aftermath of this By-Election
It was considered disastrous for the opposition camp and was another watershed for the opposition since 1966Singaporean by-election, 1966
-Background:There were 3 By-elections held within 1966, with the first triggered just 4 months after separation from Malaysia on 8 December 1965. Lim Huan Boon from Barisan Sosialis , who started the trigger of the BS boycott of Parliament because they claimed that Singapore's independence was...
when the Barisan Sosialis
Barisan Sosialis
The Barisan Sosialis is a former Singaporean left-wing political party formed in 1961, by left-wing members of the People's Action Party and led by Dr Lee Siew Choh and Lim Chin Siong.-Formation:...
chose to resign from Parliament in that top of the 2 opposition parties, namely the National Solidarity Party and Singapore Justice Party
Singapore Justice Party
The Justice Party, Singapore is a political party in Singapore.The party has been based mostly in Marine Parade district of Singapore since the party has taken part in general elections after 1988 by fielding its candidates only at Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency...
, had their election deposits forfeited. It showed a disunity within the opposition. Chee Soon Juan
Chee Soon Juan
Chee Soon Juan, PhD is a politician and political activist from Singapore. He is currently the leader of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party ....
then took up the leadership of the Singapore Democratic Party
Singapore Democratic Party
The Singapore Democratic Party is an opposition political party in Singapore.The party was founded in 1980 by Chiam See Tong, who as Secretary-General became the party's first Member of Parliament in 1984 when he was elected as MP for Potong Pasir...
under controversial circumstances and both Chee
Chee Soon Juan
Chee Soon Juan, PhD is a politician and political activist from Singapore. He is currently the leader of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party ....
and Chiam
Chiam See Tong
Chiam See Tong is a politician and lawyer from Singapore. He is the country's longest-serving opposition Member of Parliament . Between 1984 and 2011, he represented the constituency of Potong Pasir in Singapore's Parliament....
fell out within a year. Singapore Democratic Party
Singapore Democratic Party
The Singapore Democratic Party is an opposition political party in Singapore.The party was founded in 1980 by Chiam See Tong, who as Secretary-General became the party's first Member of Parliament in 1984 when he was elected as MP for Potong Pasir...
subsequently lost 2 of the newly accquired seats in 1997, namely Nee Soon Central SMC and Bukit Gombak SMC. Chiam See Tong
Chiam See Tong
Chiam See Tong is a politician and lawyer from Singapore. He is the country's longest-serving opposition Member of Parliament . Between 1984 and 2011, he represented the constituency of Potong Pasir in Singapore's Parliament....
had by then formed Singapore People's Party
Singapore People's Party
The Singapore People's Party is a left of centre opposition political party in Singapore. The party's leader is Chiam See Tong.-Foundation:...
in 1996, contested under that party's banner and retained his Potong Pasir
Potong Pasir
Potong Pasir is an area located between Toa Payoh and Sennett Estate in the North-East Region of Singapore. For urban planning purposes, it is classified under the Toa Payoh area. Potong Pasir is particularly notable for being the longest-held opposition ward in one-party dominant Singapore...
seat. Marine Parade GRC has since 1992 enjoyed walkovers at subsequent general elections until almost 19 years later, in 2011, which saw the most hotly contested election since the independence of Singapore.
For the People's Action Party
People's Action Party
The People's Action Party is the leading political party in Singapore. It has been the city-state's ruling political party since 1959....
, it was a victory as Goh
Goh Chok Tong
Goh Chok Tong is the Senior Minister of Singapore and the chairman of the central bank of Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore. He also served as the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore from 28 November 1990 to 12 August 2004, succeeding Lee Kuan Yew, the former Prime...
obtained a strong mandate within his constituency and the votes to PAP had risen on its next election by 4% and winning back 2 of the seats.