1992 Marine Parade by-election
A parliamentary by-election was held in Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency on 19 December 1992. It was called by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, the MP for the Marine Parade division, who vacated the four-member GRC to seek a fresh mandate and to bring in candidates of "ministerial calibre".
It was the only occasion on which a sitting Singaporean Prime Minister vacated his own constituency to stand at a by-election, creating the possibility that Goh could have lost the premiership within two years of taking office. It was also the first multi-cornered contest held inside a GRC. The People's Action Party (PAP) team was re-elected with 72.94% of the vote against three opposition parties.
Background
At the time of the by-election, both Deputy Prime Ministers Ong Teng Cheong and Lee Hsien Loong were undergoing cancer treatment. Goh framed the by-election as an opportunity for political self-renewal. The incumbent PAP team of Goh, Othman bin Haron Eusofe and Matthias Yao stood again, with Lim Chee Onn replaced by Teo Chee Hean, a former chief of the Republic of Singapore Navy making his electoral debut.
At the 1991 general election, Goh had said he would hold a by-election within 12 to 18 months to allow Workers' Party (WP) Secretary-General J. B. Jeyaretnam to contest, as Jeyaretnam's five-year disqualification from standing for election expired shortly after the 1991 polls. The WP ultimately did not contest the by-election after one of its candidates arrived late on Nomination Day, 9 December 1992.
The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP), then the largest opposition party with three seats, fielded a team led by Chee Soon Juan, a National University of Singapore lecturer making his electoral debut.
Candidates
Four parties were nominated on 9 December 1992:
- People's Action Party — Goh Chok Tong, Othman bin Haron Eusofe, Teo Chee Hean, Matthias Yao
- Singapore Democratic Party — Chee Soon Juan, Low Yong Nguan, Ashleigh Seow, Mohamed Shariff bin Yahya
- National Solidarity Party — Sarry bin Hassan, Ken Sen, Tan Chee Kian, Paul Yong Choon Poh
- Singapore Justice Party — Lim Teong Howe, Suib bin Abdul Rahman, Theng Chin Eng, Yen Kim Khooi
Results
| 1992 Marine Parade GRC by-election | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidates | Votes | % | Bar | |
 |
Goh Chok Tong Othman bin Haron Eusofe Teo Chee Hean Matthias Yao |
48,965 | 72.94 | ||
 |
Chee Soon Juan Low Yong Nguan Mohamed Shariff bin Yahya Ashleigh Seow |
16,447 | 24.50 | ||
 |
Ken Sen Tan Chee Kian Sarry bin Hassan Yong Choon Poh |
950 | 1.42 | ||
| Template:SG/SJP | Theng Chin Eng Yen Kim Khooi Suib bin Abdul Rahman Lim Teong Howe |
764 | 1.14 | ||
| Majority: 30,804 (48.44%). Turnout: 68,436 (92.50%). Registered electors: 73,986. Source: Elections Department Singapore | |||||
Aftermath
The PAP team was sworn in on 18 January 1993. Goh Chok Tong remained Prime Minister until 2004 and MP for Marine Parade until his retirement in 2020. Teo Chee Hean, who made his debut at this by-election, was the last of the team to leave politics, retiring in 2025.
The NSP and SJP both forfeited their election deposits.
See also
References
|