Workers' Party to be offered 2 NCMP seats in 15th parliament. Who will it field?

Besides winning 10 parliamentary seats in the 2025 General Election, the Workers' Party (WP) will be offered two non-constituency member of parliament (NCMP) seats.

This was after the WP lost in two constituencies, namely Jalan Kayu SMC and Tampines GRC, with the narrowest margins.

For the SMC, WP candidate Andre Low lost by 806 votes, after scoring 48.53 per cent of votes.

For the GRC, the WP slate, which comprised Faisal Manap, Michael Thng, Ong Lue Ping, Eileen Chong, and Jimmy Tan, won 47.37 per cent of votes.

Assuming WP will take up the offer and that Low will not turn down his NCMP seat, who will WP choose from its Tampines team to fill the remaining NCMP seat?

Very likely: Michael Thng

Thng, 37, appears to be a forerunner in the contest, as he represented WP at Mediacorp's live political roundtable in English during the campaign period.

Although this was the first time he represented the party on national television, Thng performed credibly and spoke eloquently.

The Harvard postgraduate major did not refer to notes while answering questions from the moderator and academics.

Other than his performance at the roundtable, his (relative) young age might also give him a leg up in relation to other candidates.

When it comes to filling NCMP seats, WP's past decisions seemed to suggest that it preferred younger candidates.

In GE2011, WP was offered two NCMP seats after losing the contest in East Coast GRC.

At the time, WP's central executive committee (CEC) decided to give the seat to Gerald Giam, then 34, instead of Eric Tan, then 55, who was the most senior member in the party's slate in East Coast GRC.

Also very likely: Eileen Chong

While Thng is young, there is one member in WP's slate for Tampines GRC who is even younger than he is.

Chong, 33, is also likely to be a frontrunner, as she represented WP in Mediacorp's live political roundtable in Mandarin.

Her presence at the roundtable was significant for the party, as WP was absent from the Mandarin political debate during GE2020 due to a lack of party members whose Mandarin proficiency was up to what was required for a live debate.

Besides her strong performance, Chong, a former diplomat who served at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for seven years, may also help bring more balance to WP's gender representation in parliament.

At an election rally on Apr. 28, WP chair Sylvia Lim also highlighted the importance of having female politicians, especially those in opposition parties.

Amongst the 10 elected WP MPs, only two of them are women: Lim, and Sengkang GRC MP-elect He Ting Ru.

Third option: sending both?

Other than fielding either Thng or Chong, there is theoretically a third option for WP CEC.

In 2016, the WP filed a motion at a Parliament sitting to declare Lee Li-Lian's NCMP seat vacant and have it filled by Daniel Goh.

In that parliament, the two NCMPs came from the losing East Coast GRC team — Leon Perera and Goh.

Should Low wish not to take up the NCMP seat, WP can send both Thng and Chong to parliament if they file a motion.

Under the NCMP scheme, an opposition political party can send a maximum of two NCMPs from one GRC.

Nevertheless, regardless of which option the CEC eventually proceeds with, Singaporeans can safely expect 12 WP members in parliament soon.

Top images via Workers' Party/Facebook