SPP to contest 4 constituencies at next election

SINGAPORE: The Singapore People’s Party (SPP) will contest four constituencies at the next General Election, it said in a statement on Saturday (Mar 14). 

The party’s announcement came one day after the release of the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee’s (EBRC) report.

Out of the four constituencies the party will contest, three – Potong Pasir, Marymount and Mountbatten – are Single Member Constituencies (SMCs), while Bishan-Toa Payoh will be the only Group Representation Constituency (GRC) the party will contest.

“Deciding to contest in a constituency is not a decision that must be taken lightly. It is a decision that is the culmination of years of tireless groundwork, fearless advocacy and competent service,” the party said.

READ: More electoral divisions, no 6-member GRCs in coming election: EBRC report

READ: Workers’ Party questions EBRC decision to dissolve 3 SMCs

Friday’s EBRC report recommended 14 SMCs, up from the current 13. Four of them – Kebun Baru, Marymount, Punggol West and Yio Chu Kang – are new, while three were dissolved.

The report also added a new Sengkang GRC, increasing the total number of GRCs to 17.

SPP chairman Jose Raymond will contest in Potong Pasir SMC. During the last general election, Mr Sitoh Yih Pin of the People’s Action Party (PAP) held his seat against SPP’s Lina Chiam, garnering 66.4 per cent of the vote.

Meanwhile, SPP secretary-general Steve Chia will lead a team to contest Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC for the third time. In 2015, the PAP won 73.59 per cent of the vote against an SPP team.

SPP also contested Mountbatten SMC in 2015, with Ms Jeanette Chong-Aruldoss gaining 28.16 per cent of the vote against PAP’s Lim Biow Chuan. Ms Chong-Aruldoss left the party last year.

Marymount SMC is a new constituency carved out from the current Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC. It mostly comprises wards under Manpower Minister Josephine Teo.

“The SPP has been serving the community in the above-mentioned constituencies since the last general election,” it said.

We have been committed to the residents there and we intend to see it through by offering the  voters there a credible choice at the upcoming general election.”