SINGAPORE: Ahead of an expected Presidential Election on Sep 1, the Elections Department (ELD) announced on Thursday (Aug 17) that it has received six applications for the Certificate of Eligibility and 16 community declarations.
The Certificate of Eligibility is one of two documents that candidates must apply for, if they wish to enter what would be Singapore’s first presidential contest in 12 years.
It is given to those who meet public or private sector requirements, among other criteria.
The community certificate allows candidates to declare if they are from the Chinese, Malay, Indian or “Other Minority” communities.
It is not relevant to the upcoming election, which is open to all races, but the declaration is needed to determine when the next reserved election will be held.
If no one from a particular community has been elected to the office of the President for the past five terms, the next election shall then be reserved for that community.
Applications for the Certificate of Eligibility and the Community Certificate closed at 5.30pm on Thursday, the fifth day after the writ of election was issued by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.