I spent the evening of the 7 May 2011, election night, at the home of a very good friend of mine, who generously offered me and my family dinner before we sat ourselves comfortably on the sofa in his living room, to watch the election results on TV on CNA.
As the night wore on, it became clear that the full results will only be known well into the early hours of the next day, 8 May 2011, but my friend and I were determined to sit through the whole coverage on TV as we sensed that this was going to be a historical elections. The 9 days of campaigning before this were intense, marked by a tremendous outpouring of emotions by both the candidates and the electorate, thus signaling that somehow this elections was going to be different. And it was.
The headline news of this elections can be summarised as follows:
* The incumbent PAP won 81 out of the 87 seats in parliament, giving it the overwhelming majority to form the next government. The PAP got 60.1% of the popular vote, down 6% points from the 2006 elections.
* The WP has etched its name into the annals of Singapore political history by breaking the PAP stranglehold in the GRC wards and snaring the most hotly contested ward of Aljunied GRC. It has emerged as the new force in Singapore opposition politics, taking 6 seats and 46.6% of the votes cast in the wards it contested in, a 8% improvement from 2006.
* The WP’s winning of the prized Aljunied GRC has resulted in the ousting of PAP stalwart, Foreign Minister Mr George Yeo and Ms Lim Hwee Hua, Minister in PM’s Office.
* The SPP, opposition veteran politician, Mr Chiam See Tong’s party, bowed out by failing to secure any seat, including its stronghold of Potong Pasir.
* The SDP, which fielded a strong slate of new candidates, was the most improved party, garnering 36.8% of the popular vote, a 13.6% increase from 2006.
* The NSP which contested the most number of wards this time round, secured 39.3% of the votes, the second highest among the opposition parties.
The PAP has reason to celebrate. It was returned to power with a solid mandate of 60% which is impressive by any first world standard.
The WP has reason to celebrate because its historic winning of the GRC gives hopes to other opposition parties to do likewise. It also possibly gives credence to the idea that a 2-party system may emerge in Singapore, an idea that has been brushed aside by the PAP as not workable.
The SDP has reason to celebrate because its extensive use of new media and its “softer” image brought on by a new branding strategy has won over many admirers as reflected in its achievement as the most improved party in this elections. 
However, I feel the SDP secretary-general, Dr Chee Soon Juan, may still be the albatross around the party’s neck because his previous abrasive and confrontational political style does not sit comfortably with many. Even a hint of any remnants of this style still being harboured by the party will undermine its efforts to re-brand itself.
In fact, some online political websites have criticized a local newspaper for striking a telling blow in SDP’s chances of a good showing in the run-up to polling day. The party was supposed to have put a close fight with the PAP in the Holland-Bukit Timah GRC led by Dr Vivian Balakrishnan.
But the results showed otherwise, with Dr Vivian securing 60.1% of the votes and the Dr Vincent Wijeysingha’s SDP team garnering nearly 40%.
Some people said one of the factors could have been negative reports from The New Paper that questioned whether Dr Chee was a loose canyon, while saying that he appeared ready to lead a group of supporters in a march. This caused a backlash from netizens who created a Facebook page asking for a boycott of The New Paper. 
The NSP’s future as one of heavyweights among the opposition parties in Singapore is uncertain. But what is certain is, it has introduced to Singapore a rough diamond in Nicole Seah who has won admirers, even among the PAP.
SM Goh Chok Tong has said that Nicole communicated well with people, both the young and the old. SM Goh’s Marine Parade GRC’s percentage of the votes was 56.7% and its winning margin was a less than impressive 13.3%, prompting him to say that his young team-mate, Ms Tin Pei Lin was a factor.
His guarded support of Ms Tin despite her shortcomings in connecting with the youth, (which was the main reason she was fielded in the first place), seems to suggest that the jury is still out on whether the PAP will retain Ms Tin as a candidate in the next elections. Her performance as the representative for MacPherson will be crucial to her survival.
This elections has indeed been one of the most exciting and memorable for me personally and I suspect for many Singaporeans. The cut and thrust of rally speeches by candidates as they debated policies and issues was followed enthusiastically by many, thanks to new media.
People got involved, especially the younger voters in the 20s and 30s, by contributing ideas and comments in blogs and on political websites. Many of these Gen Y voters also volunteered their time to the various parties.
The apparent stigma of being associated with an opposition party is also disappearing, which is acting as a catalyst to spur more participation among their ranks. This political awakening among the Gen Y voters is a positive development for Singapore which has long been labeled as a nation of apathetic people who have given their mandate to the government to be their proxy in all matters of public policy.
The current rhetoric from the PAP, post-elections, that it has heard the people and that it will have to communicate a lot better with the people and try to meet their aspirations and higher expectations, has got a lot of the voters nodding their heads in approval. And this is a positive outcome of GE 2011 which we can all take pride in.
However, I feel a great sadness in the exit of Mr George Yeo, a PAP stalwart, who I admire a great deal. Many of the voters in Aljunied GRC have made it clear that it is not personal but it was a vote against the PAP, the party, which I think is scant comfort for Mr Yeo.
He was the original reformer who had called for a change within the PAP when he first came into public office in 1988. He has made his mark in international fora as Foreign Minister and has gained the respect of many ASEAN government ministers.
Mr George Yeo was among the first Singapore political leaders to make the call to nurture Singapore’s soul even as she develops her physical infrastructure and economy at an unrelenting pace. The PAP will do well to resurrect this ethos espoused by Mr Yeo, if it is not to lose more ground in the next elections. Even though the ouster of Mr George Yeo is a great loss for Singapore, I believe we have not seen the last of him. A political resurrection of sorts could just be on the cards…I hope:-).
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