Today's Edition
Singapore (AFP)
Singapore on Tuesday set general elections for May 3, poll officials said, in a vote seen as a crucial test for Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.
It will be the first electoral battle for the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) under Wong since he succeeded Lee Hsien Loong, the son of founding prime minister Lee Kuan Yew, last year after decades of leadership by the influential Lee family.
Earlier today, Singapore's parliament was dissolved, a government gazette said.
The PAP is almost certain to dominate and win most seats, as it has in every vote since independence in 1965, although its share of the popular vote will be closely watched after one of its worst electoral performances in the last contest in 2020.
The election will take place amid a gloomy economic outlook as US President Donald Trump's tariffs threaten to hit activity in the trade-reliant nation, which on Monday downgraded its growth forecast for 2025 to 0% to 2%, from 1% to 3%.
The upcoming election will have four more seats compared to the last vote in 2020, with 97 lawmakers elected from 15 single-member electoral divisions and 18 divisions with 4 or 5 members each.
In February, Wong delivered what analysts called "a full-blown election budget" with goodies for all Singaporeans ahead of the polls.
