If Singapore has to hold its elections before Covid-19 is over, the government will take "all the precautions necessary" so that parties can campaign effectively and people can vote safely.
This was announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong today (Mar. 14), one day after the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) released its report.
With less than 14 months left to hold the next General Election, Singapore has two choices, said PM Lee:
"Either hope and pray that things will stabilise before the end of the term so that we can hold elections under more normal circumstances – but we have no certainty of that.
Or else call elections early, knowing that we are going into a hurricane, to elect a new government with a fresh mandate and a full term ahead of it, which can work with Singaporeans on the critical tasks at hand."
Jobs, businesses, and lives are at stake, said PM Lee, adding that the best choice and election date will depend on what will best see Singapore through the Covid-19 crisis.
"Covid-19 may well turn out to be the crisis that defines this generation of Singaporeans," he said. "We must gird ourselves to overcome this together, and show the world what Singapore can do."
EBRC review completed
Historically, it took as little as one day for Parliament to be dissolved after the EBRC report was released. The longest it took was two months.
The 2020 electoral boundaries review saw three hotly-contested Single Member Constituencies -- Fengshan, Punggol East, and Sengkang West -- absorbed into new Group Representation Constituencies.
A new Group Representation Constituencies -- Sengkang -- was also formed.
The Workers' Party also noted that the Single Member Constituencies that it is active in have disappeared in the latest review.
If you want to check which GRC or SMC you belong to:
Top image via PM Lee/Facebook, OneMap.