Three-way contest at Sembawang GRC; straight fights in Nee Soon, Sembawang West

Sembawang GRC will see a three-cornered fight, with the opposition Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) and National Solidarity Party (NSP) both throwing their hats in the ring against a PAP slate headlined by Health Minister Ong Ye Kung.

- Sandra Davie

Meanwhile, Law and Home Affairs Minister K. Shanmugam will once again helm the PAP team at Nee Soon GRC, in a face-off with a Red Dot United slate led by its secretary-general Ravi Philemon.

There will also be a straight contest in the newly minted Sembawang West SMC, where PAP's Ms Poh Li San will take on veteran opposition politician and SDP chief Chee Soon Juan.

All three battlelines were formalised at the Chongfu School nomination centre on April 23, where candidates from the ruling party pointed to its record of helping residents, while the opposition parties touched on issues like the rising costs of living.

Speaking to the media, Mr Ong, 55, said: "I believe this is quite an extraordinary election, happening at the time when the global situation is changing, happening also at the time we have a new Prime Minister, and happening at the time when Singaporeans are thinking about what kind of government system we want."

Mr Ong's team will include two fresh faces — Mr Ng Shi Xuan, 35, and Mr Gabriel Lam, 42, alongside incumbent MPs Vikram Nair, 46, and Mariam Jaafar, 48. At the last general election, a PAP team led by Mr Ong beat the NSP to take Sembawang with 67.29 per cent of the vote.