Singapore’s election season unofficially began with the redrawn constituencies announced by the Elections Department Singapore’s (ELD) and the ensuing gerrymandering controversy. The general election (GE), to be held on May 3rd, is Lawrence Wong’s first since he took over as prime minister in May 2024. The stakes are high for the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP), after significant opposition gains in GE 2020 signalled Singaporeans’ growing appetite for plural political representation.

In the din of domestic activity, it is easy to forget that there are more than 200,000 Singaporeans living overseas. Many are deeply invested in the goings-on back home. A reported 18,389 citizens have successfully registered to cast their ballots overseas, almost three times the number of registered overseas voters from the 2023 presidential election (PE2023). Similar to PE2023, polling stations will be set up at 10 overseas missions for GE2025, in countries where a significant number of Singaporeans reside. These include the United States, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates, China, Japan, and Australia. Singaporeans based abroad can also cast their vote via postal ballot, first put in place for the PE2023. 

Studies of East Asian democracies have suggested that the Singapore overseas voting system is amongst the most accessible, especially after the addition of mail-in ballots. Some of the best, such as Japan and South Korea, allow their overseas citizens to vote from any overseas diplomatic mission. Taiwan, on the other hand, forces its citizens to return home to vote.