Hot wards of GE2020 rejigged, parties 'cannot fight old battles': Observers

EBRC taking pains to explain the rationale behind redrawing is a positive step, they say

- Goh Yan Han

The hottest constituencies of 2020 have been rejigged ahead of the 2025 General Election (GE), with some new battlegrounds to watch out for in Jurong and Punggol, observers said.

These changes from the Electoral Boundaries Review Committee's (EBRC) report released on March 11 may scupper the plans of the opposition parties that fought the closest contests in constituencies such as East Coast GRC, West Coast GRC and Bukit Batok SMC the last round, they said.

The adjustments could also affect the incumbent People's Action Party (PAP), given that the sitting MPs will have to manage the changes, they pointed out.

While it seems clear that large population shifts in certain regions had sparked some boundary redrawings, the changes might feel politically driven to some voters, said observers whom The Straits Times spoke to.

They noted that for the first time in decades, the committee took pains to explain the rationale behind the redrawing of the boundaries, adding that this was a positive step that could help Singaporeans better understand the changes.

The hot wards of GE2020, contested then by the Workers' Party (WP), Progress Singapore Party (PSP) and Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), which have since indicated interest to return, had their boundaries significantly redrawn, following changes to adjacent constituencies that had rapid population growth.

Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) senior research fellow Gillian Koh said that the three parties "cannot fight the old battles of GE2020" in these areas in the upcoming election.

"In the revision of the boundaries, the PAP will be able to incorporate some of those areas into its stronger wards," she added.

The opposition parties will have to strategise within themselves and across the parties, given talk of competing claims to constituencies, she said.