Singapore is a parliamentary representative democratic republic whereby the president of Singapore is the head of state, the prime minister of Singapore is the head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the Cabinet from the parliament, and to a lesser extent, the president. Cabinet has the general direction and control of the government and is accountable to Parliament. There are three separate branches of government: the legislature, executive and judiciary abiding by the Westminster system. Singapore has been described as being a de facto one-party state.
Nanyang Technological University (NTU) is one of Singapore's two major national universities. Founded in 1981, it is also the second-oldest autonomous university in the country. NTU is frequently ranked within the world's top 30 universities according to most major international rankings, and is widely-considered to be one of the two most prestigious universities in Singapore, the other being the National University of Singapore.
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, and a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections.
The prime minister of Singapore is the head of government of the Republic of Singapore. The president appoints the prime minister, a Member of Parliament (MP) who in their opinion, is most likely to command the confidence of the majority of MPs. The incumbent prime minister is Lee Hsien Loong, who took office on 12 August 2004.
The president of the Republic of Singapore is the head of state of Singapore. The president represents the country in official diplomatic functions and possesses certain executive powers over the Government of Singapore, including the control of the national reserves and the ability to revoke and appoint public service appointments. The president also holds the prerogative to grant pardons.
The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England.
The Government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore to consist of the President and the Executive. Executive authority of Singapore is vested in the President but exercised on the advice of the Cabinet led by the Prime Minister. The President, acting as the Head of State, may only act in their discretion in appointing the Prime Minister, acting as the Head of Government; as well as withholding consent for the dissolution of Parliament; along with performing key checks on the Government in addition to the ceremonial duties of the Head of State inherited from the Westminster system. The Cabinet, consisting of the Prime Minister and ministers appointed by the President on the Prime Minister's advice, is responsible for heading the Executive through ministries and other statutory boards. At the end of the term or at any time during the term, once the President has consented to a request made by the Prime Minister to dissolve Parliament, Parliamentary General Elections are held to elect members of Parliament for a new term. The President, in their discretion, then appoints a Prime Minister who is a member of Parliament representing any political party or coalition of political parties who in their judgement is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the members of Parliament. The Prime Minister then forms the Government and, along with the Cabinet, sets the general direction and control of the Government for the next term.
A Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) is a member of the Parliament of Singapore who is appointed by the president. They are not affiliated to any political party and do not represent any constituency. There are currently nine NMPs in the Parliament.
The Cabinet of Singapore forms the executive branch of the Government of Singapore together with the President. It is led by the Prime Minister who is the head of government. The prime minister is a Member of Parliament (MP) appointed by the president who in the president's judgment is likely to command the confidence of the majority of the Members of Parliament (MPs). The other Ministers in the Cabinet are Members of Parliament appointed by the president acting in accordance with the advice of the prime minister. Ministers are prohibited from holding any office of profit and from actively engaging in any commercial enterprise.
The Parliament of Singapore is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Singapore, which governs the country alongside the president of Singapore. Largely based upon the Westminster system, the Parliament is made up of Members of Parliament (MPs) who are elected, as well as Non-constituency Members of Parliament (NCMPs) and Nominated Members of Parliament (NMPs) who are appointed. Following the 2020 general election, 93 MPs and two NCMPs from three political parties were elected to the 14th Parliament. Throughout the sitting of Parliament, nine NMPs are usually appointed by the president on a biennial basis.
A group representation constituency (GRC) is a type of electoral division or constituency in Singapore in which teams of candidates, instead of individual candidates, compete to be elected into Parliament as the Members of Parliament (MPs) for the constituency. Synonymous to the party block voting (PBV) or the general ticket used in other countries, the Government stated that the GRC scheme was primarily implemented to enshrine minority representation in Parliament: at least one of the MPs in a GRC must be a member of the Malay, Indian or another minority community of Singapore. In addition, it was economical for town councils, which manage public housing estates, to handle larger constituencies.
Alex Yam Ziming is a Singaporean politician who has been serving as Mayor of North West District since 2020. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Yew Tee division of Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC since 2011.
Lily Neo is a Singaporean medical practitioner and former politician. A former member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), she was a Member of Parliament (MP) between 1997 and 2020.
Gan Thiam Poh is a Singaporean politician and businessman. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Fernvale division of Ang Mo Kio GRC since 2020, and previously the Sengkang South division of Ang Mo Kio GRC between 2015 and 2020, and the Punggol South division of Pasir Ris–Punggol GRC between 2011 and 2015.
Saktiandi bin Supaat is a Singaporean politician and economist. A member of the governing People's Action Party (PAP), he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) representing the Toa Payoh East division of Bishan–Toa Payoh GRC since 2015.