WP new faces hit the ground in the east; party may contest over 30 seats in GE2025: Observers

SINGAPORE – The Workers’ Party (WP) has been walking the ground in at least eight constituencies, including Tampines and Pasir Ris-Punggol GRCs, putting it on track to contest one-third of the seats in Parliament in the coming general election.

Nine new faces and former candidates who may stand under the opposition party’s banner have been seen with its MPs walking the ground in these areas.

This includes new faces who could fill its two empty seats in Sengkang and Aljunied GRCs.

Political observers said the party, which currently controls two GRCs and one SMC, may be looking to field more than 30 candidates this general election, up from 21 the last round.

This would be in line with

its long-time goal of winning a third of the seats in the House

.

The WP has not said how many candidates it will field in the upcoming election, nor where it will contest. It did not respond to queries on its possible new candidates.

Where have WP’s new faces been seen?

In Sengkang GRC, Mr Abdul Muhaimin Abdul Malik, senior property manager of Aljunied-Hougang Town Council (AHTC), has been seen in photos with the constituency’s MPs.

He was pictured with Mr Louis Chua and Associate Professor Jamus Lim at a Christmas event posted about on Facebook on Jan 1, 2025, and at a walkabout with Prof Lim posted about on Jan 21, among other events.

Mr Abdul Muhaimin, who has been working for AHTC since 2015, could potentially fill the spot in Sengkang GRC left vacant by Ms Raeesah Khan, who

resigned as MP in November 2021

.

Another resignation, in July 2023 –

that of Mr Leon Perera

– has also left a vacancy in five-member Aljunied GRC.

His possible successors include tech executive Kenneth Tiong and communications executive Jackson Au, who have been seen at walkabouts and events in 2024 with Aljunied’s remaining MPs – Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh, Ms Sylvia Lim, Mr Faisal Manap and Mr Gerald Giam.

Mr Au is part of WP’s media team, and has recently been pictured with the party’s Marine Parade team as well.

The Straits Times understands that WP members have also been walking the ground in Punggol West, as well as other parts of Punggol town that are currently part of Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC.

Among them are Mr Tan Kong Soon, assistant director for alumni engagement at Nanyang Technological University, and familiar WP names Lee Li Lian and Yee Jenn Jong.

Mr Tan, a WP member since 2007, is deputy organising secretary in the party’s central executive committee (CEC).

He has been a recurring face on the CEC, which is the party’s highest decision-making body, having been on previous iterations elected in 2016 and 2022.

Mr Tan used to be a legislative assistant to former WP chief and Aljunied GRC MP Low Thia Khiang from 2013 to 2017. He was also the party’s youth wing vice-president from 2012 to 2016.

A party source who declined to be named said the team has been making house visits and introducing themselves to residents for almost two years, in anticipation of possible boundary changes that could see the formation of a new GRC.

WP did not contest Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC in 2020, but fielded Ms Tan Chen Chen in Punggol West, where she got 39 per cent of the vote. Ms Tan is not expected to run for election in 2025.

The presence of Ms Lee and Mr Yee on the ground in Punggol has fuelled speculation on whether they may be making political comebacks this GE.

Ms Lee was MP for Punggol East between 2013 and 2015 after winning a by-election in the SMC.

She stepped down from the CEC in 2020 but returned in 2024, and is now WP’s deputy media head. She is also a town councillor on the WP-run Sengkang Town Council.

Mr Yee has stood in the last three general elections. A narrow loss in Joo Chiat SMC against the People’s Action Party’s Mr Charles Chong in 2011 earned him a seat as a Non-Constituency MP.

Since contesting in Marine Parade GRC in 2020, Mr Yee has said several times in social media posts that he has largely retired from active politics.

When contacted on their potential return to WP’s election slate, Mr Yee declined to comment, while Ms Lee did not respond.

Other WP members walking the ground include senior counsel Harpreet Singh Nehal in Marine Parade GRC, and lawyer Ang Boon Yaw, who has been seen in East Coast GRC.

Mr Ang is in his second consecutive term on the party’s CEC and is deputy organising secretary.

He started volunteering with the party in 2012, helping out at former Aljunied GRC MP Chen Show Mao’s Meet-the-People Sessions.

Mr Singh’s possible candidacy has received much attention online, given his position as a senior counsel. He was appointed in 2007.

In a recent LinkedIn post, he said one of the most fulfilling commitments he made in 2024 was to “work alongside the dedicated members and volunteers of the Workers’ Party”, adding that he was immensely proud to be associated with it.

Another potential candidate is Mr Jasper Kuan, a digital strategist in the financial services and payment sector. He was featured in the Hougang documentary put out by the WP in 2024, where he is seen talking to residents with current MP Dennis Tan.

Why one-third?

At the WP’s Members’ Forum in January, party chief Pritam Singh said there is little purpose for the party to reveal its candidates and where they will stand before Nomination Day, “unless there is a strategic or tactical reason to do so”.

He added that the party’s final deployments will depend on the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee (EBRC) report, which

will lay out changes to constituency boundaries for the upcoming election,

expected to be held in the first half of the year.

Mr Singh also told members that the party will need to bring newer, younger candidates on board, with those eventually fielded “a mix of both individuals who have walked the ground extensively, as well as new members”.

He added: “Given today’s political context in Singapore, we believe that at least one-third of the elected Members of Parliament must be opposition MPs.”

When brought to Parliament, changes to the Constitution – which cover fundamental principles by which Singapore is governed – require two-thirds approval from the House.

Typical legislative changes require only a simple majority – or half.

The WP fielded 21 candidates in 2020, down from 28 in 2015 and 23 in 2011.

If it fields candidates in the five-member Tampines and Pasir Ris-Punggol GRCs, in addition to the six constituencies it contested in 2020, this will bring its total number of candidates to 31.

Singapore Management University law don Eugene Tan said he expects the WP to field at least 31 to 33 candidates. There are currently 93 elected seats in Parliament.

Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) senior research fellow Gillian Koh had a similar estimate, adding that the party would have to field more candidates to reach its one-third target as there will likely be a higher total number of seats.

This is as the EBRC has been instructed to keep the average ratio of electors to elected MPs at about the same as the last general election, but Singapore’s population has increased since then.

What is the party looking for?

It would not make sense to field individuals with similar attributes in one GRC, Mr Pritam Singh said.

Rather, the party will do its best to deploy a balanced team, in terms of youth, experience and value-add, among other criteria, he added.

Associate Professor Tan said how well a team reflects its GRC’s demographics matters immensely.

In GE2020, for example,

the WP’s Sengkang team

was noticeably younger than its Aljunied one, and also younger than the team fielded by its PAP opponents. “But it enabled the slate to connect well with residents there,” said Prof Tan.

The average age of WP’s Sengkang slate in 2020 was 35, while

its Aljunied slate

averaged 46.8. The PAP’s Sengkang slate averaged 49 years.

When asked about the possibility of the party fielding Mr Harpreet Singh in Marine Parade GRC, Prof Tan said it appears that the party has assessed Marine Parade to be vulnerable.

Marine Parade was the party’s second-closest GRC loss in 2020 with

42.26 per cent of the vote,

while East Coast was the closest with 46.61 per cent.

He added that Mr Harpreet Singh could also be easily deployed to another GRC such as East Coast.

Prof Tan described the WP as prudent in not overreaching in the last few general elections, and sees the party as being in a transitional phase between consolidation and expansion.

IPS’ Dr Koh said WP leaders have always said they take their time to make sure that whoever they field has a heart for public service, after trying them out and watching them operate on the ground.

Another factor in candidate selection is the ability to manage something like a town council competently after

the AHTC saga,

she said.

And Ms Khan’s exit has also “chastened them to look deeper into the character of recruits”, she added.

During the 2020 hustings, Ms Khan apologised after she

was given a stern warning by the police

for old social media posts that had surfaced, and that had promoted enmity among different groups and committed contempt by scandalising the court.

National University of Singapore political scientist Elvin Ong said this incident could have made the WP more likely to consider candidates’ past social media posts, and also their maturity and resilience in dealing with setbacks.

Hence, so-called star catches will still be tested as they must have not only good political acumen and management nous, but also integrity and selflessness in service, added Dr Koh.

Dr Ong said qualities like personability to ordinary Singaporeans, contributions to the party, willingness to adhere to party discipline, and organisational skills will also count.

Mr Pritam Singh said in his January speech that its election committee has

engaged commercial parties to help screen candidates and review their personalities

.

This will assist in its deployment plans, he added.

Prof Tan called this a demonstrative move to assure Singaporeans that the party has rigorous quality control in its candidate-screening process.

New faces would likely have cleared the screening process to be walking the ground featured in photos with party MPs, he added.