Singaporean general election, 1997

Singaporean general election, 1997
Singapore
2 January 1997
83 seats (Plus 1 NCMP) to the Parliament of Singapore
Only 36 seats contested
42 seats needed for a majority
Turnout 95.9%
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader Goh Chok Tong J.B. Jeyaretnam Chiam See Tong
Party PAP WP SPP
Leader since 1992 1972 1996
Leader's seat Marine Parade GRC Cheng San GRC
(lost)		 Potong Pasir SMC
Last election 77 seats, 61% 1 seat, 1.2% None
Seats won 81 1 + 1 NCMP 1
Seat change Increase4 Steady0 Increase1
Popular vote 465,751 101,544 16,746
Percentage 65.0% 14.2%(total) / 37.6%(valid) 2.3%(total) / 27.2%(valid)
Swing Increase4.0% Decrease0.1%/Decrease3.5% Increase2.3%/Increase27.2%
Prime Minister before election

Goh Chok Tong
PAP

 Elected Prime Minister

Goh Chok Tong
PAP

Singapore
This article is part of a series on the
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The 1997 Singaporean parliamentary election was an election in Singapore which was held on 2 January 1997. 765,332 out of the eligible 1.8 million voters voted and selected their next government. The election results was released in the late evening that day and the ruling People's Action Party won a total of 81 out of 83 seats as well as a tenth consecutive term in office under the then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong. Other major political parties contesting in the election were the Workers' Party, Singapore Democratic Party, National Solidarity Party, Singapore People's Party and the Democratic Progressive Party.

After nomination day on 23 December 1996, the People's Action Party returned to power with a total of 47 out of the total 83 seats and could form a government on nomination day. On polling day, voters voted for the election for their members of parliament with all but two seats going to the PAP. In this election, Group Representation Constituencies were increased from four members to five and six members. Housing issues were one of the issues raised during the election.

Background

This was another opportunity for Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong to score a better mandate after PAP's considerably poorer showing in the 1991 election. Two seats in PAP-held Eunos and Toa Payoh GRCs were vacated after the death of MP, Dr Tay Eng Soon and inauguration of former Deputy PM Ong Teng Cheong as Singapore's fifth and first elected President in 1993 respectively. The former GRC, which twice saw narrow wins against WP, was dispersed into neighbouring constituencies.

Meanwhile, the main opposition, the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) was facing serious internal strife.

SDP Member of Parliament and former leader Chiam See Tong sued his party's central executive committee, including its new leader Dr Chee Soon Juan and one of its MPs, chairman Ling How Doong, for defamation, and won. Prior to nomination day, Chiam resigned from SDP and crossed over to its splinter party, Singapore People's Party. Two opposition candidates who came under heaviest fire from PAP were Dr Chee and Tang Liang Hong, who was standing on the WP ticket with its secretary-general J. B. Jeyaretnam. Tang was accused by PAP of being an anti-Christian Chinese chavunist. Group Representation Constituencies (GRC) went up from four to between four and six seats each. A National Solidarity Party team was disqualified from Tampines GRC after one candidate was found to have his name struck off the electoral rolls for not voting in 1991. For the first time, a Nominated MP – listed company director Chia Shi Teck – ran in an election.

Electoral boundaries

New candidates

Retiring candidates

Election results

With the Housing Development Board (public housing) upgrading scheme dangled as a pricy stake for voters, PAP reversed its electoral decline for the first time in four elections and since 1963, won back an opposition ward, recapturing the two SDP seats out of the four it had lost the last round. The PAP's share of the vote rose by 4 percentage points nationally. With Chiam See Tong's defection, SDP had no representation in Parliament since 1984. Low Thia Khiang, now WP assistant secretary-general, and Jeyaretnam as a Non-Constituency MP, returned to the legislature, the latter's last presence was previously in 1986.

 Summary of the 2 January 1997 Parliament of Singapore election results
Parties and alliances Leader Contested
seats		 Seats won Popular vote % +/-
People's Action Party Goh Chok Tong 83 81† 465,751 65.0
+4.0
Workers' Party Joshua Benjamin Jeyaretnam 14 1 101,544 14.2
-0.1
Singapore Democratic Party Chee Soon Juan 13 0 76,129 10.6
-1.4
National Solidarity Party Steve Chia 7 0 48,322 6.7
-0.6
Singapore People's Party Chiam See Tong 3 1 16,746 2.3
N.A.
Democratic Progressive Party Tan Soo Phuan 2 0 5,043 0.7
N.A.
Independent N.A. 1 0 3,210 0.4
N.A.
Total 83 734,000 100.0 -
Spoilt votes 17,255 -
Did not vote 31,332 -
Total voting electorate 765,332 -
†includes uncontested victories

Election aftermath

In June 1997, when Nominated MPs were re-appointed, the number was increased from six to nine.

Tang Liang Hong's self-imposed exile

Main article: Tang Liang Hong

After the election, Worker's Party candidate for Cheng San Group Representation Constituency, Tang Liang Hong was sued for defamation by several of the PAP's leaders, including Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew and Deputy Prime Ministers Lee Hsien Loong and Tony Tan, who accused him of making statements during the campaign which falsely questioned their integrity. A total of 13 judgements were entered against Tang for defamation.

Tang left Singapore shortly after the election and eventually found refuge in Australia.

Official websites of political parties

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