Singapore reveals coronavirus-era election measures, as July poll speculation increases

Name: Half of Singapore’s coronavirus cases show no symptoms, co-head of task force says
Uploaded: 2020-06-08T09:05:29.000Z
Duration: 1 min 12 s
Description: Half of Singapore’s coronavirus cases show no symptoms, co-head of task force says

The Elections Department announced more polling stations, time bands for voters and priority for the elderly to reduce health risks

This comes amid rumours that PM Lee Hsien Loong may call a general election in July, soon after circuit breaker measures are further eased

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A man walks past the Elections Department centre in Singapore on June 8. The city state has announced special measures for elections during the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: AFP

Dewey Sim

Published: 5:05pm, 8 Jun 2020Updated: 2:54pm, 24 Jun 2020

Singaporean election officials on Monday said special measures such as the allocation of suggested “time bands” for voters to cast their ballots and priority for elderly citizens to vote in the morning would help ensure that the country’s upcoming general election does not compromise public health.

Also in the slew of measures announced by the Elections Department for the safe conduct of the polls in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic was a 25 per cent increase in the number of polling stations to 1,100 to reduce crowding.

The department’s announcement followed requests by opposition parties in recent weeks for clarity on election rules as speculation rose that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong may call a general election in July, soon after circuit breaker measures currently in place are further eased.

Singapore’s constitution grants the prime minister full prerogative powers to trigger elections at any time during a government’s term of office. Observers have suggested he will do so as soon as possible to avoid being caught out by a future wave of the Covid-19 outbreak.

The government’s term is set to expire in January and elections must be called by April.

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Half of Singapore’s coronavirus cases show no symptoms, co-head of task force says

While questions have been swirling over whether physical political events will be permitted, the agency said it would only release campaigning guidelines “at a later date” based on guidance from the Health Ministry, and depending on when the polls are called.