For the first time since independence, all 89 seats in Singapore's election were contested by 10 functioning political parties in Singapore that could make this GE2015 the watershed election.

The fact that every SMC and GRC is being contested means something.

But as we wait for the first result announcements to trickle in, it might do us good to step back and shed some light on the thoughts and opinions of those who have cast their vote today -- especially those who have voted for the first time.

After all, when we speak of the future generation, this is the group that will be most affected the most.

Before I launch into an analysis of the responses, however, I must list a few caveats.

A total of 12 first-time voters serve as respondents who have been asked for their opinion. They do not aspire to be wholly representative. Instead, this is an endeavour to gather some on-the-ground sentiments on what first-time voters were thinking when they entered the polling booth.

Next, this writer specifically requested for voters who reside in the hotly contested areas and the eight areas worth watching (see Mothership.sg’s sorting here). It is likely that they would have deliberated more on the parties and their proposed solutions, and hence, offered carefully considered answers.

Now that we have gotten that out of the way, let’s take a look at the results:

1. Most of them are students

To be more precise, they are mostly undergraduates from various universities both in Singapore as well as overseas. The one exception to this pattern is fresh graduate Regina Tan, 22, who received her degree just last year. However she echoed views similar to her peers, so age may be a strong indicator of common interests.

This would explain why their priorities revolve around very real issues, such as healthcare, housing, transport, cost of living and employment opportunities. In other words: first-time voters are aware of the difficulties that will face them when they enter the workforce and eventually wish to settle down and start families.

2. Most of them have actively kept abreast of the news

They were divided, however, on how much news they received, how frequently and from what platforms.

A healthy amount of them kept up with the news from both mainstream channels and social media on a daily basis, especially in recent weeks.

However some who are currently or who have been overseas for long periods did not have the time or resources to access local news as regularly. Others, busy with school, also found themselves picking up highlighted scraps off their social media accounts.

This underscores the need for responsible reporting across all media platforms, be it your traditional broadsheets, online news reporting sites or even personal blogs maintained by individuals interested in politics.

3. Even those who are relatively disinterested in politics encouraged others to be informed

As Lia, 22, put it: “I wouldn't recommend this ignorance [of mine]. I'll probably read up and go for a rally or two in the week leading up to 11 September.”

4. Most of them have reasonable, valid opinions...

For example, 21-year-old Punggol East SMC resident Cheryl Fong established what helped her identify leaders. She felt that “true leadership” shows itself in how “some candidates from both the ruling party and opposition have shown forgiveness to naysayers and the media.”

Regina also decided for herself that her “harsh” judgment of the Workers’ Party (WP), caretakers of her Aljunied GRC ward, was justified. “[They had] won with the support of the residents who wanted someone who speak for them in parliament,” she said. “[But] I had hardly seen any engagement on the ground before this election period.”

5. ...even if some remain unswayed by any particular candidate or party for a long time

Three interviewees asserted with confidence the recipients of their crosses long before Election Day. (For the kaypoh, it’s two to People’s Action Party (PAP) and one for National Solidarity Party (NSP).)

But they were a minority. At the time that they were interviewed, almost half of the interviewees expressed that they didn't know which party to vote for yet.

One such person was Azri Alwi, a resident of the newly carved out Fengshan SMC. He explained his neutrality: “My beef with Singapore has more to do with the mindset and priorities of her people and that's one thing that no party can actually change.” Although he was situated in a critical ward, the lack of any convincing arguments eventually led him to spoil his vote.

Eunice Bek from Punggol East SMC asserted that her vote was not to be determined singly by the party name. Said the undergraduate currently based in China: “I will vote for whoever resonates with me and shows potential in delivering new good policies”.

Perhaps this signals that politicians must now look into capturing the youth vote as well.

6. These first-time voters care deeply about Singaporean issues.

As mentioned earlier, most interviewees were primarily engaged on five key concerns. It is worth noting that despite their relatively young age range, first-time voters were just as occupied with bread and butter issues as the older generations.

But wait – they seemed to care about other contentious topics that have emerged repeatedly in the past few years too.

Fadhil Yunus Alsagoff, a 23-year-old undergraduate, for instance, had freedom of speech at the fore of his mind, raising the Amos Yee saga as a prime example of how straitjacketed the population remains in terms of voicing dissent. Lia, on the other hand, said that keywords such as “single mothers” caught her attention.

Yet are these issues really that trivial? After all, WP East Coast GRC candidate Dr Daniel Goh has exhorted the thousands who turned up at their rallies to speak up bravely. He offered the story of being promoted to full professorship at the National University of Singapore (NUS) in spite of his public involvement with WP as evidence that the “knuckle duster” era of politics is over.

The single-parent issue has also been repeatedly broached, the most groaningly obvious candidate for this being National Solidarity Party’s (NSP) Kevryn Lim. Related topics such as work-life balance, maternity and paternity leave as well as motherhood have each also taken their turn at the headlines.

Generally, however, it is true that these subjects remain at the fringe of national concerns. The PAP-led government has had a tendency to publicly emphasise the need for social stability at the expense of the disenfranchised. As first-time voters gradually progress into being full-fledged members of society, it will be interesting to watch how the government begins to respond to these demands.

7. They also care that people are making rational decisions that have been critically thought over.

Many interviewees reiterated the importance of being an informed voter.

Tan Zhi Hao, 24, urged people to assess the “feasibility” of “populist policies” before being swept away by the grand promises of many parties.

If you don’t know how to go about doing this, you could perhaps take a leaf out of 23-year-old Tampines GRC voter Justin Khaw’s book: “Get educated, read the papers, listen to rallies, read between the lines, ask difficult questions, form your own opinions, don’t blindly follow social media content and talk about [issues] constructively and intellectually with your friends, families and teachers.”

Though voting has ended, this remains a pertinent piece of advice to take. After all, first-time voters will go on to have a say in another four to five years, while those who didn't make the cut into the electorate this time round will definitely be heading to polling booths next time round as well.

8. They can no longer be mollycoddled with simple rhetoric or ‘naming and shaming’ tactics.

They may have been first-time voters, but they were far from naïve; they seemed to have tired of this pattern of trading barbs unproductively.

As Zhi Hao put it: “Some of the politics that both the PAP and the opposition use – primarily character assassination – feel rather childish.”

Another interviewee, Tang Si Wai of Potong Pasir SMC, likened the “childish” fighting to “kids snatching candy” and reasoned: “If you got the goods means you got it. Why go to so much trouble to quote each other and have a fight with words?”

While of course the yardstick by which one can measure a party’s ability to deliver what they promise is debatable, it does indeed attest to a growing culture of trusting our own judgment.

Fadhil noted that “[articles] appear frequently on social media sites such as Twitter, YouTube and Facebook, so I think it’s a lot easier for our generation to keep up with the elections.”

This greater outreach has eased access to information in ways that were previously unthinkable back when mainstream media held absolute monopoly over the news. Consequently, we may begin to favour our capacity to evaluate parties, candidates and policies.

It is a good thing because we become arguably more knowledgeable and may in fact reach a point where healthy and constructive dialogue can take place amongst our citizens. But we must also caution ourselves against relying so heavily on our subjectivity. As individuals, it is difficult for us to view things objectively and sometimes we may simply be regurgitating mindlessly biased rhetoric ourselves.

9. Regardless of which party they are gunning for, it seems all of them agree that a healthy amount of opposition will improve the governance of Singapore

“[T]here is definitely value in having an alternative voice in parliament.” – Henry, 22

“The Singapore political scene definitely looks more exciting now, especially with stronger opposition voices.” – Fadhil

“[I hope for] the opposition to groom better candidates and maybe walk the ground a little more. It would be great if, in five years’ time, the opposition begins fielding excellent candidates (the likes of Chiam See Tong) who can really give PAP a run for their money.” – Zhi Hao

I wonder what PM Lee has to say about this.

10. But above all, first-time voters care about the future of Singapore

All of them appeared to inherently understand the weight of their vote.

They understood that everyone's vote matters. While Si Wai expressed wanting to “[vote] for people who really have the capabilities to take care of [my ward]”, Eunice simply said she was going to “[vote] for whoever [resonated] with [her] concerns.” Regina, who might be envisioning something far larger, advised: “Vote for the party that will best represent our future or what we envision our future to be.”

In what was perhaps the latest in a series of impassioned millennial pleas, Azri said that the least you could do for your vote was to believe in it. He said: “Vote for whoever the hell you want, but your obligation to the country is to make sure that, even if for the most trivial of reasons, you (and I mean you as an individual with an opinion) believe in it.”

Though the GE2015 voting period has officially concluded, these are gems of wisdom worth contemplating.

First-time voters are well aware of what they are fighting for. Fadhil said: “We are fighting for the future of all Singaporeans, not only the future of the people that will govern our affairs.” And Zhi Hao agreed, because although he acknowledged to being part of the now-minoritised group that thinks “a single-party government is fine as long as they do their job”, he also qualified his position: “[Give] the opposition a good listen and if they give you reason to vote them, then give them a serious consideration. Because they deserve that, because Singapore deserves that.”

Let the results roll in.

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