A” GOOD” SHOWING FOR WP OR A “SLO W PROGRESS”?
Social observers CNA spoke to were divided on whether there were any positive lessons to be learned from Singapore’s primary criticism party’s election efficiency.
Associate Professor Chong noted that the WP had resisted the general pattern of a federal jump toward the PAP and opposition parties by retaining and increasing its voting share in the districts it was defending.
They would have liked to do better, he said,” It’s in some ways a good election, I’m sure.” They “have momentum going into the next legislative session and the following poll.”
Dr. Teo noted that the Singapore Democratic Party, whose general Chee Quickly Juan managed 46.81 percent of the vote in Sembawang SMC, had won over 40 percent of the votes in all of the new constituencies it contested.
She said,” It does demonstrate that the WP has significantly expanded its product among voters.”
But, Mr. Singh, a former PAP MP, claimed that the WP” should be seen as making to slow a improvement.”  ,
” I’m confident that winning another GRC will offer them more credibility than simply getting a few more votes overall,” he said.
He claimed that when they should have focused on one” sure-win” GRC and SMC, the WP had spread its stronger individuals too lightly across their districts.
With DPM Gan’s shift to Punggol,” PAP even outsmarted WP,” Mr. Singh said, referring to Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong’s last-minute change from Chua Chu Kang GRC to Punggol GRC, where senior lawyers Harpreet Singh was assigned.  ,
In a constituency some had anticipated would be tightly contested, the PAP team won with 55.17 percent of the ballot to the WP’s 44.83 percent.