PE2011 Constituency Support

Each Presidential candidate will try to draw votes across Singapore. Some will do better than others, depending on constituency.

Which area will give the strongest support to each candidate?

FIND OUT MORE

Tan Jee Say

Tan Jee Say polled nearly 40% of the votes in Holland-Bukit Timah during GE 2011. No mean feat, considering he was up against 2 officeholders: Vivian Balakrishnan (Minister) and high-flyer Sim Ann (now Senior Parliamentary Secretary).

A former SDP member, Jee Say is likely to enjoy votes from SDP supporters who felt he had a raw deal in GE 2011.

Jee Say also has the endorsement of Nicole Seah from NSP, which should draw votes from NSP supporters and Nicole’s 100,000 strong Facebook base.

Tan Cheng Bock

Tan Cheng Bock remains very strong in Ayer Rajah. Indeed, many Ayer Rajah volunteers are believed to be helping him. Cheng Bock is a skilled networker and has business contacts as well, some involved in his Presidential campaign.

When it comes to traditional grassroots campaigning, Cheng Bock is an expert, with skills honed from years of GE contests in Ayer Rajah.

Cheng Bock knows how to mobilise supporters and stir fire into people’s hearts. All this is part of the “village doctor” appeal and is part of his power to shape minds.

Cheng Bock may not be the best judge of character, however. He helped Tan Jee Say during GE 2011, when Jee Say was still with SDP. Now Jee Say and Cheng Bock are opponents on the Presidential Election battlefield.

Tan Kin Lian

Tan Kin Lian previously enjoyed the status of “furthest from the Establishment”, but has since been usurped by Tan Jee Say. Among his former NTUC Income staff, Kin Lian reportedly arouses polarised reactions: some swear by him, while others want to swear at him.

Kin Lian still has the support of many Minibonds investors, who remember how he was first to rally support for them – back when Jee Say was still doing investment advising, and long before Cheng Bock decided to run for President.

Tony Tan

Tony Tan Keng Yam will get good support from his old stronghold of Sembawang, where he was contested regularly during the 1970s and 1980s.

In the 1979 by-election in Sembawang, Tony Tan received 78.4% of the votes against Harbans Singh (no relation of Pritam Singh). Tony Tan’s vote share increased to 81.6% during their GE 1980 rematch.

In GE 1984, Tony Tan faced a different opponent, Stanley Mariadass – and obtained 77.4% of the Sembawang vote.

During the GRC era, Tony Tan’s first and only GRC contest was in GE 1988. The team of Tony Tan, Charles Chong and K Shanmugam polled 70.1% against a UPF slate of Harbans Singh, Ang Bee Lian and Kasim Bin Ibrahim.

In GE 1991, 1997 and 2001, Sembawang GRC was uncontested.

But Sembawang is not all of Singapore – and the tactics which consolidated support in Sembawang may not have the same impact islandwide. In this post-GE 2011 era, Tony Tan has his work cut out for him.

Tim Geithner. Not a Tan. Not running for Singapore President.

Another place Tony Tan will enjoy support from is Davos, where he has frequently spoken during the World Economic Forum to global decision makers. Unfortunately for Tony, even Tim Geithner only has 1 vote, and it’s not tenable in Singapore elections.

Coming Soon: Why Tan Cheng Bock’s place in history may rival Lee Kuan Yew’s…

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