2001 Singapore General Election
General elections were held in Singapore on 3 November 2001 to elect members of Parliament. They were the ninth general election since independence in 1965. The number of directly elected seats increased from 83 to 84 following adjustments to electoral boundaries.
The ruling People's Action Party (PAP) retained power, winning 82 of the 84 seats and 75.29% of the valid votes, its strongest showing since the 1980 election. With 55 seats uncontested on Nomination Day, the PAP was returned to government before polling for the third consecutive election. As of 2025 it remains the most recent general election in which the PAP was returned to power on Nomination Day.
The two elected opposition members were Chiam See Tong of the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA), who retained Potong Pasir SMC, and Low Thia Khiang of the Workers' Party (WP), who retained Hougang SMC. A Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) seat was offered to Steve Chia of the SDA, the best-performing losing opposition candidate in Chua Chu Kang SMC; he accepted. Chia was the first NCMP since the scheme's introduction in 1984 not to be from the WP.
This was Goh Chok Tong's last election as Prime Minister before he handed over to Lee Hsien Loong in 2004.
Background
The PAP government had initially planned to hold the election in 2002, but brought it forward amid an economic slowdown linked to the lingering effects of the 1997 Asian financial crisis, the dot-com bubble and the early 2000s recession, conditions further worsened by the September 11 attacks. The 2001 election had the shortest campaign period in Singapore's history, 17 days from the release of the boundaries report to polling day. The election deposit was raised from S$8,000 to S$13,000.
A seat in Jalan Besar GRC had been vacated in 1999 following the conviction of PAP MP Choo Wee Khiang for cheating; no by-election was held, as a by-election can only be called in a GRC if all its seats are vacated.
Opposition parties
For the first time since 1963, a formal opposition coalition was formed: the Singapore Democratic Alliance (SDA), comprising the Singapore People's Party (SPP), the National Solidarity Party (NSP), the Pertubuhan Kebangsaan Melayu Singapura (PKMS) and the Singapore Justice Party (SJP), led by SPP Secretary-General Chiam See Tong.
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) fielded 11 candidates across three constituencies, with Secretary-General Chee Soon Juan leading its team in the new Jurong GRC.
The Workers' Party contested only two constituencies, Hougang SMC and Nee Soon East SMC, after its proposed Aljunied GRC team was disqualified for submitting incomplete nomination papers and several other planned teams failed to appear at their nomination centres. Former NCMP J. B. Jeyaretnam, who had lost his seat in July 2001 after being declared bankrupt, resigned from the party; Low Thia Khiang became Secretary-General.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 17 October 2001 | Publication of Electoral Boundaries report; certification of Registers of Electors |
| 18 October 2001 | Dissolution of 9th Parliament; Writ of Election issued |
| 25 October 2001 | Nomination Day |
| 26 October – 2 November 2001 | Campaigning period |
| 3 November 2001 | Polling Day |
| 25 March 2002 | Opening of 10th Parliament |
Electoral boundaries
The Electoral Boundaries Review Committee report was published on 17 October 2001. The 10th Parliament was to return 84 members across nine single member constituencies (SMCs), nine five-member GRCs and five six-member GRCs, with all previous four-member GRCs eliminated.
The election introduced Holland–Bukit Panjang GRC, Jurong GRC (restructured from most of the former Bukit Timah GRC) and Pasir Ris–Punggol GRC (renamed from Pasir Ris GRC and expanded with the Punggol and Sengkang areas from the dissolved Cheng San GRC). Bukit Timah GRC, Cheng San GRC and Kreta Ayer–Tanglin GRC were dissolved. Bukit Timah and Joo Chiat SMCs were reinstated.
Results
The PAP secured 75.29% of the vote, its best performance since 1980. The election recorded the highest number of walkovers since 1968, with only 29 of 84 seats contested. Both opposition-held seats from 1997, Hougang and Potong Pasir, were retained but with reduced majorities, each below 55%.
Two candidates, Tan Kim Chuang and Tan Lead Shake, forfeited their deposits. Tan Cheng Bock recorded the election's highest contested result, 87.96% in Ayer Rajah SMC.
By constituency
| Results of 2001 Singapore general election | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constituency | Seats | Electorate | Party | Candidate(s) | Votes | Votes % | |
| Aljunied GRC | 5 | 125,115 |  |
Ong Seh Hong Cynthia Phua Yeo Guat Kwang George Yeo Zainul Abidin Rasheed |
Uncontested | ||
| Ang Mo Kio GRC | 6 | 166,644 | |
Inderjit Singh Lee Hsien Loong Balaji Sadasivan Seng Han Thong Tan Boon Wan Wee Siew Kim |
Uncontested | ||
| Ayer Rajah SMC | 1 | 18,475 | |
Tan Cheng Bock | 15,024 | ||
| Template:SG/DPP | Tan Lead Shake | 2,057 | |||||
| Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC | 5 | 114,621 | |
Davinder Singh Leong Horn Kee Ng Eng Hen Wong Kan Seng Zainudin Nordin |
Uncontested | ||
| Bukit Timah SMC | 1 | 26,951 | |
Wang Kai Yuen | 19,121 | ||
 |
Tong Meng Chye | 4,376 | |||||
| Template:SG/Independent | Tan Kim Chuang | 1,215 | |||||
| Chua Chu Kang SMC | 1 | 24,863 | |
Low Seow Chay | 15,349 | ||
| |
Steve Chia | 8,143 | |||||
| East Coast GRC | 6 | 144,012 | |
Abdullah Tarmugi Chew Heng Ching Lee Yock Suan Raymond Lim S. Jayakumar Tan Soo Khoon |
Uncontested | ||
| Holland–Bukit Panjang GRC | 5 | 118,834 | |
Gan Kim Yong Lim Swee Say David Lim Teo Ho Pin Vivian Balakrishnan |
Uncontested | ||
| Hong Kah GRC | 5 | 129,073 | |
Ahmad Khalis Abdul Ghani Ang Mong Seng John Chen Amy Khor Yeo Cheow Tong |
96,450 | ||
 |
Cheo Chai Chen Bryan Lim Boon Heng Lim Tung Hee Sarry Bin Hassan Wong Hong Toy |
24,513 | |||||
| Hougang SMC | 1 | 23,320 |  |
Low Thia Khiang | 12,070 | ||
| |
Eric Low | 9,882 | |||||
| Jalan Besar GRC | 5 | 100,268 | |
Heng Chee How Lee Boon Yang Loh Meng See Lily Neo Yaacob Ibrahim |
68,309 | ||
| |
Fong Chin Leong Lim Bak Chuan Mohd Rahizan Bin Yaacob Ng Kee How Sin Kek Tong |
23,391 | |||||
| Joo Chiat SMC | 1 | 21,745 | |
Chan Soo Sen | 15,426 | ||
| Template:SG/Independent | Ooi Boon Ewe | 3,038 | |||||
| Jurong GRC | 5 | 115,113 | |
Foo Yee Shoon Halimah Yacob Lim Boon Heng Ong Chit Chung Tharman Shanmugaratnam |
84,742 | ||
| |
Chee Siok Chin Chee Soon Juan Karuppiah Ambalam Gandhi Mohamed Isa Bin Abdul Aziz Vincent Yeo |
21,511 | |||||
| MacPherson SMC | 1 | 22,010 | |
Matthias Yao | 16,870 | ||
| Template:SG/DPP | Tan Soo Phuan | 3,277 | |||||
| Marine Parade GRC | 6 | 140,174 | |
Gan Lai Chiang Goh Chok Tong Mohamad Maidin Othman Haron Eusofe R. Ravindran Lim Hwee Hua |
Uncontested | ||
| Nee Soon Central SMC | 1 | 22,975 | |
Ong Ah Heng | 16,755 | ||
| |
Ling How Doong | 4,583 | |||||
| Nee Soon East SMC | 1 | 28,465 | |
Ho Peng Kee | 19,566 | ||
| |
Poh Lee Guan | 6,990 | |||||
| Pasir Ris–Punggol GRC | 5 | 134,151 | |
Ahmad Magad Charles Chong Michael Lim Penny Low Teo Chee Hean |
Uncontested | ||
| Potong Pasir SMC | 1 | 16,616 | |
Chiam See Tong | 8,107 | ||
| |
Sitoh Yih Pin | 7,356 | |||||
| Sembawang GRC | 6 | 166,137 | |
Chin Tet Yung Hawazi Daipi K. Shanmugam Warren Lee Maliki Osman Tony Tan |
Uncontested | ||
| Tampines GRC | 5 | 125,432 | |
Mah Bow Tan Irene Ng Ong Kian Min Sin Boon Ann Yatiman Yusof |
85,915 | ||
| |
Abdul Rahim Bin Osman Foo Kok Wah Neo Ting Wei Sebastian Teo Yip Yew Weng |
31,231 | |||||
| Tanjong Pagar GRC | 6 | 141,150 | |
Chay Wai Chuen Chong Weng Chiew Indranee Rajah Khaw Boon Wan Koo Tsai Kee Lee Kuan Yew |
Uncontested | ||
| West Coast GRC | 5 | 110,779 | |
Arthur Fong Cedric Foo Ho Geok Choo Lim Hng Kiang S. Iswaran |
Uncontested | ||
| Source: Elections Department Singapore | |||||||
Aftermath
Non-Constituency Member of Parliament
With two elected opposition seats, one NCMP seat was offered to and accepted by Steve Chia of the SDA, the best-performing losing opposition candidate, who had taken 34.66% in Chua Chu Kang SMC. He was the first NCMP not from the Workers' Party since the scheme's introduction in 1984.
Chee–Goh hawker centre incident
During the campaign on 28 October, SDP leader Chee Soon Juan confronted Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong at a hawker centre in Hong Kah, using a megaphone to ask about loans extended by Singapore to Indonesia under President Suharto in the aftermath of the 1997 Asian financial crisis. Goh Chok Tong and Lee Kuan Yew filed defamation suits against Chee shortly after the election. Chee lost the suit in 2002 and his appeals in 2003, and was ordered to pay damages of S$300,000 to Goh and S$200,000 to Lee. He was declared bankrupt on 10 February 2006, rendering him ineligible to contest that year's election, and returned to electoral politics in 2015 after being discharged from bankruptcy in 2012.
Democratic Progressive Party expulsions
After the election, the DPP expelled Tan Soo Phuan and his son Tan Lead Shake for breaching party directives over the constituencies they contested. The party became dormant thereafter.
See also
References
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