Chamber:
	Parliament
Dates of elections / renewal (from/to):
	31 August 1991
Purpose of elections:
	Elections were held for all the seats in Parliament following the premature dissolution of this body on 14 August 1991. General elections had previously taken place on 3 September 1988.
Background and outcome of elections:
	On 14 August 1991, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong called for a general election set for 31 August – two years ahead of schedule. Mr. Goh, who took over the premiership from Mr. Lee Kuan Yew in November 1990, called the election to seek a popular mandate for his leadership, open “consultative” style and liberal reform policies, and to tackle the issue of “where we want to go and how we intend to reach there”. As such, the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) used as its manifesto “Singapore: The Next Lap”, a broad plan to improve the living standards of the people in the next 20 years. On Nomination Day (21 August), the PAP was returned to power as it captured 41 of the 81 seats, leaving 40 seats to be contested. During the nine-day campaign, the five opposition parties focused on local issues and bread-and-butter problems rather than offering alternate manifestoes. In the event, three new opposition MPs (besides Mr. Chiam See Tong, leader of the Singapore Democratic Party (SDP)) were elected. The PAP – in power since independence in 1965 – nevertheless received a solid endorsement with its total of 77 seats in the 81-seat Parliament, despite a slight drop in percentage of votes obtained. Political analysts felt that a broader contest would have somewhat nullified the effect the by-election strategy had on many swing voters, and the opposition MPs’ performance in Parliament would now come to under stricter scrutiny by the electorate, especially given Mr. Goh’s pledge to hold by-elections within 18 months. On 5 September, Prime Minister Goh announced the line-up of his reshuffled Cabinet.

STATISTICS

Round no 1 (31 August 1991): Elections results*
Number of registered electors	847,716
Voters	805,573 (95.03%)
Blank or invalid ballot papers	21,961
Valid votes	783,612

Round no 1: Distribution of votes
Political Group	Candidates*	Votes	%
People’s Action Party (PAP)	40	477,760	60.97
Worker’s Party (WP)	13	112,010	14.29
Singapore Democratic Party (SDP)	9	93,856	11.97

Comments:
	* In the 20 single-member constituencies and 5 (4-member) group representation constituencies where polling took place.

Round no 1: Distribution of seats
Political Group	Total	Gain/Loss
People’s Action Party (PAP)	77	-3
Worker’s Party (WP)	1	+1
Singapore Democratic Party (SDP)	3	+2

Distribution of seats according to sex:
Men:	79
Women:	2

Distribution of seats according to age:
30-39 years	17
40-49 years	35
50-59 years	27
60-69 years	2
Distribution of seats according to profession:
University professors and lecturers	13
Lawyers	5
Doctors	3
Journalists	1
Architects	1
Others (trade unionists, businessmen, teachers, politicians, former civil servants, etc.)	58