A total of 39 Malay Minority Certificates and 32 Indian or Other Minority Certificates were received. These are required by members of minority ethnic communities who contest the General Election in a Group Representaion Constituency (GRC).

208 applications for Political Donation Certificates were received, which means there will be a minimum of 208 candidates for the upcoming General Election.

On the final day for submitting the applications, the National Solidarity Party's likely team for Marine Parade GRC was the first to arrive at the Elections Department. They include Mr Ivan Yeo, Mr Spencer Ng, Mr Abdul Salim Harun and Ms Nicole Seah.

Representatives from the Singapore People's Party, the Singapore Democratic Alliance and the Singapore Democratic Party turned up as well.

SDP candidate James Gomez said his party submitted more than 11 application forms for the political donation and minority candidate certificates, as it wanted flexibility in fielding the best candidates for the General Election.

The SDP has formally introduced 11 candidates so far.

Representatives of the People's Action Party's (PAP) likely Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC slate were also present to collect the updated Registers of Electors.

Meanwhile, Reform Party secretary-general Kenneth Jeyaretnam was present at the same time as his former party member Alec Tok, who was submitting his application for the political donation certificate. They did not speak to each other.

When asked, Mr Tok said he will announce today if he is contesting in the coming polls as an independent candidate or under another party's banner.

The artistic director of a theatre company had been hoping to stand in the Radin Mas ward but said yesterday that much has changed in the last 24 hours.

"This is the penultimate stage. I should have a definite answer by this evening. I believe I'll be in a position (to say) tomorrow what my plans are," said the 46-year-old.

Shortly after, PAP grassroots adviser in Holland-Bukit Timah GRC Christopher De Souza turned up to collect the political donation certificates on behalf of all the party's potential candidates as they were ready, he said.

♥ 4:07 AM

All political parties contesting the upcoming election will be given air-time on radio and tv to broadcast their political platforms and messages, the Media Development Authority (MDA) announced on Saturday, 23 April 2011.

The first broadcasts will be aired next Thursday, 28 April 2011, one day after Nomination Day and the second will be on Friday, 6 May 2011 or known as the 'Cooling Off Day', which is on the eve of the Polling Day on Saturday, 7 May 2011.

Eligibility will be determined by the number of candidates fielded by a recognised political party.

Air time for each party is allocaed beased on the number of contesting candidates, ranging from 2.5 minutes for a party with 6 - 7 candidates fielded to 12 minutes for a party with 80 - 87 candidates.

The pre-recorded broadcasts will be in 4 languages.

Said the MDA statement: 'All the broadcasts will be on a party basis. They should not contain matter of a libellous or criminal nature.

'The purpose of such broadcasts is to make clear a political party's platform.'

Speakers nominated by the parties for the broadcasts must be candidates standing for election, added the MDA.

♥ 4:00 AM

[Thursday, 21 April 2011]

Voters will receive their poll cards within 2 - 3 days after Nomination Day on 27 April 2011, if their constituencies are contested.

If all the 12 Single-Member Constituencies (SMCs) and 15 Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) are contested, all 782 polling stations islandwide will be opened concurrently for the first time since independence for Singapore to cast their vote.

Overseas voters will have nine polling centres abroad.

Votes will then be counted at 163 counting centres when voting closes at 8pm on Polling Day, 7 May 2011.

Till this date, 42 applications for the Political Donations Certificate has been received so far.

All candidates, proposers, seconders and assentors are to bring along their Identity Cards (NRIC) or passports for verification on Nomination Day.

Any objections to the Nomination Papers can be made from 11am - 12.30pm.

Placards, flags or banners of any candidate can only be displayed at the nomination centres after the close of nomination proceedings.

That's also when candidates can make speeches at the centres.

There will be nine nomination centres for the coming General Election:

- Admiralty Secondary School for Nee Soon GRC & Sembawang GRC candidates.

- Bedok View Secondary School for East Coast GRC, Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC & Punggol East SMC candidates.

- Deyi Secondary School for Ang Mo Kio GRC, Aljunied GRC, Bishan-Toa Payoh GRC, Sengkang West SMC candidates.

- Dunman Secondary School for Tampines GRC & Hougang SMC candidates.

- Greenridge Secondary School for Holland-Bukit Timah GRC & Bukit Panjang SMC candidates.

- Jurong Junior College for Jurong GRC, West Coast GRC, Yuhua SMC and Pioneer SMC candidates.

- Singapore Chinese Girl's School for Moulmein-Kallang GRC, Tanjong Pagar GRC, Radin Mas SMC & Whampoa SMC candidates.

- South View Primary School for Chua Chu Kang GRC & Hong Kah North SMC candidates.

Elections Department's update on state of readiness for Nomination Day and Polling Day.

- Nearly 20,000 officials have been trained for these proceedings. Among the training received are simulation exercises and e-learning classes.

- A Handbook have been produced for the first time. This 60-page cooklet lists what one should know about the election and filling election expenses after Polling Day.

♥ 3:35 AM

President S. R. Nathan issues Writ of Election on the same day, shortly after the 11th Parliament of Singapore was dissolved by him as well. He also announced that the Nomination Day will be on Wednesday, 27 April 2011.

The Returning Officer, Mr Yam Ah Mee, the new CEO of the People's Association, Mr. , announced that the decisive Polling Day will be on Saturday, 7 May 2011, which will also be a Public Holiday.

The appointment was made by the Prime Minister and published in the online government gazette on Tuesday.

Mr Yam's term as Returning Officer begins on 1 June 2010.

The former Returning Officer was Mr Tan Boon Huat, who has retired.

Unchanged from the previous elections in 2006, there will be 9 Nomination Centres.

A total of 2,311,582 Singaporeans are eligible to vote in the upcoming polls. More than 1/4 will be youths, aged between 21 and 34. Some 200,000 are first-time voters.

The law states that Nomination Day - when candidates head to nomination centres to present their papers - must take place at least five working days (Saturdays included) or the maximum of one month after the writ is issued

Candidates can only start their election campaigns after nominations close and right up to two days before polling day. The campaign period must last at least nine days.

In the last General Election, 47 seats were contested, making it the most-pitched battle since 1988. This time round, the number of seats contested is expected to come close to that fought in 1988, when 86 per cent of seats were contested

There are 87 seats in 27 constituencies - 12 single- member constituencies and 15 Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) - to be contested this time round

♥ 3:24 AM

President of Singapore, His Excellency S. R. Nathan has, with advice from Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, dissolved the Parliament of Singapore on Tuesday, 19 April 2011 at around 3pm local time.

Polls MUST be held within 3 months of the dissolution of Parliament.

♥ 2:59 AM

HELLO! My blog will be filled with loads of posts related to politics and the upcoming Singapore General Elections 2011!

I will try my best to post in a neutral state.

Please leave my blog if you are not feeling happy or comfortable with my posts. Thanks! :D

Of course, meanwhile, i will try to update about other things (:

♥ 2:50 AM