GE2025: WP supporters left with mixed emotions over poll results

SINGAPORE - The colourful party streamers were still draped on the trees outside the coffee shop at Block 322 Hougang Avenue 5. While there were smiles aplenty, several WP supporters said they had mixed feelings.

Mr Ng, a 60-year-old who declined to reveal his full name, said a

WP victory in Hougang SMC

, the party’s stronghold of more than three decades, was expected.

But the party’s showing in other constituencies was not, he added.

WP contested and lost in Punggol, East Coast and Tampines GRCs, as well as in Jalan Kayu and Tampines Changkat SMCs.

“I wouldn’t say we are disappointed, but we had hope,” the driver said in Mandarin, adding that he had hoped for the WP to gain more seats in Parliament in this election, with cost-of-living concerns being top of his mind.

His group of six friends – all senior citizens and long-time residents of Hougang – had gathered on May 4 near the coffee shop to greet Mr Dennis Tan, who was re-elected for a second consecutive term in the single-seat constituency.

Mr Ng, with his friends chiming in, said WP MPs have been a consistent presence on the ground in Hougang over the years.

Another resident in her 60s, who declined to reveal her name, said: “For PAP candidates in Hougang, they have a chance to win only if they are moved to other constituencies.”

At the polls on May 3, Mr Tan, 54, beat PAP newcomer Marshall Lim, 38, with 62.17 per cent of the vote share.

Mr Wang, a Tampines GRC voter and WP supporter, was also at the coffee shop, where residents often gathered over the years to wait for the results of past general elections.

Mr Wang, who declined to reveal his full name, had a copy of Chinese-language daily Lianhe Zaobao to share the poll results with his friends.

“I thought the WP had a 50-50 chance in Tampines GRC,” he said.

The PAP team

retained the seat

with 52.02 per cent of the vote in the constituency.

On May 4, Hougang residents, who have collectively voted for WP MPs in the constituency since 1991, poked their heads out of their windows to applaud Mr Tan for retaining his seat.

They shouted cheers of “Workers’ Party” when he arrived in Hougang Avenue 5 for a victory parade at about 12.20pm.

Mr Eric Goh, who was with his two children, said: “MP Dennis Tan has been such a constant presence that even my five-year-old daughter recognises him.”

The taxi driver said Mr Tan had previously attended an event at his daughter’s infant care centre.

The WP team in Sengkang GRC also held a victory parade.

The opposition party

won 56.31 per cent of the vote share

against the PAP, up from 52.12 per cent in the 2020 General Election.

The WP’s Sengkang team – Ms He Ting Ru, 41, Associate Professor Jamus Lim, 49, Mr Louis Chua, 37, and Mr Abdul Muhaimin, 36 – waved to supporters from a lorry.

During a brief stop outside Rivervale Community Club (CC), Mr Chua told The Straits Times: “We’re out here this morning to thank our residents for their support. We are very grateful for the support they have given to us and their trust.”

Sengkang resident Andrew Yap, 60, made a special trip to catch a glimpse of the “Sengkang Four” as they are known on social media.

The businessman, who usually spends Sundays resting at home, said he took a walk in the morning in the hope of meeting them.

“They came in only five years ago but have really made a difference. When the lift in my block broke down, they fixed it quickly. When any facilities have problems, they fix it quickly,” Mr Yap said.

Other WP supporters in Sengkang told ST that the MPs have gained residents’ support over the past five years through estate improvements, including the introduction of more bus services and sheltered linkways.

Ms Shirley Leong and her friend Pamela Tan, both 30, who have lived in Sengkang since they were children, arrived too late to meet the WP team outside Rivervale CC.

Ms Tan, a freelancer in the construction industry, said the improved infrastructure has made it easier to take public transport to her workplaces.

The two women, who attended the four WP rallies during the campaign period, said this election had felt more personal than the 2020 polls.

Ms Tan said: “I felt the kampung spirit, with people from different backgrounds getting together even outside the rallies.”

At around 10.30am, a handful of WP supporters waited at Kopitiam Square near the Compass One mall, but missed the WP victory parade.

Among them was a 40-year-old mother of two, who declined to give her name. She said she and her family had moved from Punggol a few years ago because Sengkang was held by the WP.

“I am touched by what they have contributed, not just to Sengkang, but by speaking up in Parliament about issues like housing,” she said.

“My husband asked me what we would do if they had lost the election. I said, ‘We can move again.’”