When is Singapore’s next general election? Political buzz sparks polls gear-up

Analysts say new PM Lawrence Wong shouldn’t be in a hurry – but they haven’t ruled out a September election based on past timelines

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Voters queue to cast their ballots at a polling station in Singapore in 2020. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 8:00am, 4 Jun 2024Updated: 12:25pm, 6 Jun 2024

A key update from Singapore’s elections department and stepped-up activities by political parties have prompted analysts to suggest a general election may be called as early as September, just four months after the city state’s third leadership transition.

Political parties have been ramping up activities on the ground and behind closed doors, even as the department told This Week in Asia on Friday that the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee, which must be called before a general election, had not been convened.

The ruling People’s Action Party has spent the past six months collecting feedback from volunteers through a Refresh PAP initiative, spearheaded by newly minted Prime Minister Lawrence Wong who took the helm on May 15.

Predecessor Lee Hsien Loong, son of founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, remains in Wong’s cabinet as a senior minister.

Singapore’s new Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (left) shakes hands with Senior Minister and former prime minister Lee Hsien Loong during his swearing-in ceremony at the Istana last month. Photo: EPA-EFE

Wong is expected to address PAP members of parliament and supporters on June 8 about feedback on the initiative and how the PAP plans to incorporate it.

In an email sent to volunteers following the party’s convention on November 5 last year – and seen by This Week in Asia – Wong tasked them with helping to “collectively renew and refresh” the party in keeping Singaporeans united to navigate a more uncertain world.