1979 Singaporean by-elections explained

Election Name:1979 Singaporean by-elections
Country:Singapore
Type:Parliamentary
Ongoing:no
Previous Election:1977 Singaporean by-elections
Previous Year:1977
Election Date:10 February 1979
Next Election:1981 Anson by-election
Next Year:1981
Seats For Election:7 seats to the Parliament of Singapore
Turnout:74,887 (93.52%) 1.39%
Image1:Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore Making a Toast at a State Dinner Held in His Honor, 1975.jpg
Image1 Size:150x150px
Leader1:Lee Kuan Yew
Party1:PAP
Seats1:7
Popular Vote1:53,222
Percentage1:72.69%
Swing1: 1.37%
Image2 Size:150x150px
Leader2:J. B. Jeyaretnam
Party2:WP
Seats2:0
Popular Vote2:8,036
Percentage2:10.98%
Swing2: 5.59%
MP
Before Election:Govindaswamy Perumal
Yong Nyuk Lin
Ng Yeow Chong
Ong Soo Chuan
Ivan Baptist
Teong Eng Siong
Shaik Ahmad bin Abdul Haleem
Before Party:PAP
Posttitle:Elected MP
After Election:Devan Nair
Teh Cheang Wan
Eugene Yap
Koh Lip Lin
Howe Yoon Chong
Tony Tan
Rohan bin Kamis
After Party:PAP
Registered:80,075

The by-elections were held on 10 February for seven constituencies, with the nomination day held on 31 January. With 80,075 registered voters, the 1979 by-elections remain the largest by-election to have ever taken place in post-independence Singapore.

All PAP candidates, Devan Nair, Eugene Yap Giau Cheng, Howe Yoon Chong, Tony Tan, Rohan bin Kamis, Koh Lip Lin, and Teh Cheang Wan, won their respective contests with two walkovers, defeating candidates from Democratic Progressive Party, United People's Front, and an independent candidate.

Background

Continuing the trend of People's Action Party's renewal just as they did in the 1970 by-elections, six seats, including Communications minister Yong Nyuk Lin, were vacated on 12 January to make room for six new MPs. A seventh seat in Anson was earlier vacated a year prior following the death of Perumal Govindaswamy. As such, the seven seats at stake is widely regarded as the biggest-ever by-election in Singapore's history, and it had the most seats changed since the Barisan Sosialis' mass exodus back in the inaugural Parliament back in 1966.

The United People's Front criticized Barisan Sosialis for abstaining the by-elections citing an uphill contest against opposition stalwarts. In the end, only Geylang West (which one United Front (now Democratic Progressive Party) candidate was later disqualified) and Nee Soon were uncontested. As of, this by-election was the most recent by-election in Singapore with walkovers.

The by-election saw the return of Devan Nair into Singapore politics since 1963, as well as future minister Tony Tan; both of these candidates would go on to become Presidents of Singapore.

References