Political rallies were suspended due to Covid during the previous polls in 2020.
So for most first-time voters in the May 3 election, the thousands-strong crowds at rallies for the Workers’ Party (WP) – Singapore’s largest opposition group – is their first taste of a political campaign.
“You have a lot of new voters, such as myself [and] we tend to shape our own opinions,” said Kynan Lam, 24, a recent graduate who was at a WP rally on Tuesday.
But while WP has traditionally pulled massive crowds in Singapore, the numbers have seldom translated into electoral wins for them.
The ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) – whose rallies are often poorly attended in comparison –have been in power since 1959 and is expected to retain control.
So Saturday’s poll will be seen more as a referendum on PAP’s popularity under Prime Minister Lawrence Wong when up against a rejuvenated opposition.
Ruling party candidates have said they need a strong mandate to steer heavily trade-reliant Singapore through economic uncertainty in light of tariffs levied by US President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, the WP has lambasted the government for raising a goods and services tax amid rising inflation.
Its roster of new faces has also largely touted the benefits of having a sizable opposition presence in parliament to hold the PAP accountable.
One placard at Tuesday’s rally read “Power without oversight breeds arrogance!”, surrounded by supporters waving yellow balloons shaped like hammers, the party’s logo.
Thousands of supporters – some donning the opposition’s light blue colours – packed out a stadium in Singapore’s east coast in view of high-rise flats.
The WP said a recent rally drew 16,000 people.
“I think a lot of folks would say that Singaporeans don’t care,” said rally-goer Anand Gopalan.
But the 42-year-old disagreed, adding that people are “genuinely concerned about what the issues are and want to come together”.
“It’s not about being an opposition supporter or a ruling party supporter. It’s about being Singaporean first,” he said. (AFP)
