Singapore GE: Punggol East SMC hotly contested in past polls
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Punggol East is a constituency that has seen several close fights since its creation during the 1997 General Election.
It began as a ward in Cheng San GRC that saw the People's Action Party (PAP) scoring a slim victory over a Workers' Party (WP) team led by its then leader J. B. Jeyaretnam.
In the following 2001 election, it was moved to Pasir-Ris Punggol GRC where it stayed for 10 years, or two general elections.
But in 2011, it was carved out as a single-member constituency to become one of eight new single seats in the general election.
It has since been a hotly contested seat.
In the 2011 polls, there was a three-cornered fight for the seat among the PAP's Michael Palmer, WP candidate Lee Li Lian and the Singapore Democratic Alliance's Desmond Lim.
The Eurasian lawyer triumphed, with 54.5 per cent of the vote.
But two years later, snap polls were called when Mr Palmer resigned after admitting to an extramarital affair.
A four-cornered fight ensued, with the PAP fielding a political newcomer, Dr Koh Poh Koon. The WP's Ms Lee came out top, with a 54.2 per cent vote share.
In the 2015 General Election, veteran MP Charles Chong - who is now in his seventh term - was tasked with wresting the seat back from the opposition. He won by a small margin of 1,156 votes, garnering a vote share of 51.76 per cent.
