Elections Department
The Elections Department manages the conduct of Presidential and Parliamentary elections and any national referendum in Singapore. It oversees the Registry of Political Donations (RPD). The RPD administers the Political Donations Act, the objective of which is to prevent foreign interference in Singapore’s domestic politics through funding. The Registrar of Political Donations is the competent authority that administers the reporting requirements under FICA for election candidates and election agents during Presidential or Parliamentary elections. FICA refers to the Foreign Interference (Countermeasures) Act 2021 (FICA) which seeks to prevent foreigners from interfering in Singapore’s domestic politics through funding as one of its measures. It prohibits Politically Significant Persons (PSPs), which include political associations, candidates and their election agents from accepting donations other than from permissible sources and restricts the receipt of anonymous donations. However, the ELD comes under the purview of the PMO whose political appointees currently all come from PAP.
Between elections, ELD must ensure that the Registers of Electors are up to date so as to be ready for any election called at any time.
Comparison with UK's Electoral Commission
Unlike the UK's Electoral Commission[1] which is an independent body which oversees elections and regulates political finance in the UK, Singapore's ELD is a department under the PMO's office.
As a comparison, the UK's Electoral Commission also acts as a regulator[2] to carry out the following duties:
- maintain registers of political parties in Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and register non-party campaigners
provide guidance for anyone who might want to stand or campaign in an election
- publish political finance data
- regulate the imprint rules for parties and campaigners
- take action if they have reason to suspect the political finance law has been broken