| Country: | Singapore |
| Type: | parliamentary |
| Previous Election: | 1984 Singaporean general election |
| Previous Year: | 1984 |
| Outgoing Members: | 6th Parliament of Singapore |
| Next Election: | 1991 Singaporean general election |
| Next Year: | 1991 |
| Elected Members: | 7th Parliament of Singapore |
| Election Date: | 3 September 1988 |
| Registered: | 1,669,013 |
| Turnout: | 94.70% (0.95pp) |
| Seats For Election: | All 81 directly elected seats in Parliament (and up to 3 NCMPs) |
| Image1: | Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore Making a Toast at a State Dinner Held in His Honor, 1975.jpg |
| Leader1: | Lee Kuan Yew |
| Party1: | People's Action Party |
| Last Election1: | 64.83%, 77 seats |
| Seats1: | 80 |
| Seat Change1: | 3 |
| Popular Vote1: | 848,029 |
| Percentage1: | 63.17% |
| Swing1: | 1.66pp |
| Leader2: | J. B. Jeyaretnam |
| Party2: | Workers' Party of Singapore |
| Last Election2: | 12.65%, 1 seat |
| Seats2: | 0+1 NCMP |
| Seat Change2: | 1 1 NCMP |
| Popular Vote2: | 224,473 |
| Percentage2: | 16.72% |
| Swing2: | 4.07pp |
| Image3: | ChiamSeeTong-SDARally-20060502.jpg |
| Leader3: | Chiam See Tong |
| Party3: | Singapore Democratic Party |
| Last Election3: | 3.66%, 1 seat |
| Seats3: | 1 |
| Popular Vote3: | 158,341 |
| Percentage3: | 11.80% |
| Swing3: | 8.14pp |
| Prime Minister | |
| Posttitle: | Prime Minister after election |
| Before Election: | Lee Kuan Yew |
| After Election: | Lee Kuan Yew |
| Before Party: | People's Action Party |
| After Party: | People's Action Party |
General elections were held in Singapore on 3 September 1988. President Wee Kim Wee dissolved parliament on 17 August 1988 on the advice of Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew. The result was a victory for the People's Action Party, which won 80 of the 81 seats. This was the last time Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew led the PAP in an election.
Though the total eligible voter population surpassed one million in 1976, the 1988 elections was the first time that over one million voters were able to vote in contested constituencies. This was not repeated until 2006.
In 1986, Town Councils were introduced, which also cumulates to the creation of Group Representation Constituencies, a plurality general ticket voting scheme, to ensure ethnic minority representation in Parliament, starting with three member constituencies. This was also the first election where changes to electoral boundaries were approved by the Prime Minister's Office instead of tabling a bill in Parliament to approve changes.[1]
The Workers' Party absorbed the two parties, Barisan Sosialis (BS) and Singapore United Front to become the largest opposition party and also allied with the Malay party PKMS as a single faction.
In November 1990, two years after the election, the Nominated MP scheme was implemented to introduce non-partisan voices into the legislature. Although the law allowed up to six NMPs, two were appointed at the start and served for a year before the Parliament term ended.
| Date | Event | |
|---|---|---|
| 14 June | Publication of Electoral Boundaries report | |
| 17 August | Dissolution of 6th Parliament | |
| 24 August | Nomination Day | |
| 3 September | Polling Day | |
| 16 September[2] | Non-constituency Member of Parliament posts declared | |
| 9 January 1989 | Opening of 7th Parliament |
See also: List of Singaporean electoral divisions (1988–91). In addition to the creation of the Group Representation Constituency (GRC) scheme, single member constituencies (SMC) were either formed from or absorbed to neighboring constituencies due to development and electorate, which was shown in the table below:
| Constituency | Changes |
|---|---|
| Formation of Group Representation Constituencies | |
| Formed from Aljunied, Kampong Kembangan and Kampong Ubi SMCs | |
| Formed from Bedok, Kampong Chai Chee and Tanah Merah SMCs | |
| Formed from Alexandra, Brickworks and Queenstown SMCs | |
| Formed from Cheng San, Chong Boon and Jalan Kayu SMCs | |
| Formed from Eunos, Kaki Bukit and a portion of Tampines SMCs (the latter was renamed to Tampines North) | |
| Formed from parts of Bukit Batok (Hong Kah North), Hong Kah (Hong Kah Central) and Yuhua SMCs (Hong Kah South) | |
| Formed from Geylang West, Jalan Besar and Kolam Ayer SMCs. | |
| Formed from Geylang Serai, Joo Chiat and Marine Parade SMCs. | |
| Formed from Clementi, Pasir Panjang and West Coast SMCs. | |
| Formed from parts of Nee Soon (Chong Pang and Nee Soon East) and most of Sembawang SMCs Nee Soon Central and Nee Soon South were subsumed into its own SMCs | |
| Formed from Changkat SMC and Tampines SMC (the latter was divided into Tampines Changkat, Tampines East and Tampines West) | |
| Formed from Delta, Henderson, Tiong Bahru and Radin Mas SMCs; Delta was absorbed into Tiong Bahru division. | |
| Formed from Boon Teck, Khe Bong, Kuo Chuan and Toa Payoh SMCs; Khe Bong was absorbed into Boon Teck division. | |
| New Single Member Constituencies | |
| Carved out from Bukit Batok SMC | |
| Carved out from Punggol SMC | |
| Carved out from Nee Soon SMC | |
| Defunct Single Member Constituencies | |
| Absorbed to Tanjong Pagar SMC | |
| Absorbed to Ang Mo Kio SMC | |
| Absorbed to Cairnhill SMC | |
| Absorbed to Kampong Glam SMC | |
| Absorbed to Kreta Ayer SMC | |
The election introduced certain prominent members such as George Yeo, K Shanmugam, Mah Bow Tan, as well as a future WP and opposition leader Low Thia Khiang, who made his debut in Tiong Bahru Group Representation Constituency.
13 MPs retired ahead of the election per the party's renewal, which include Deputy Prime Minister Toh Chin Chye and Senior Minister S. Rajaratnam. Before that, two other MPs had vacated but neither by-elections are called, which were J. B. Jeyaretnam (Anson) and Minister Teh Cheang Wan (Geylang West).
| Candidate | Age | Constituency | Since | Replacement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ang Kok Peng | 61 | Buona Vista | 1972 | Peter Sung | |
| Chai Chong Yii | 53 | Bukit Batok | 1972 | Ong Chit Chung | |
| E.W. Barker | 68 | Tanglin | 1959 | Lew Syn Pau | |
| Eric Cheong | 58 | Toa Payoh | 1968 | Davinder Singh | |
| Fong Sip Chee | 50 | Kampong Chai Chee | 1963 | Hong Hai | |
| Jek Yeun Thong | 58 | Queenstown | 1968 | Chay Wai Chuen | |
| Lai Tha Chai | 52 | Henderson | 1972 | S Vasoo | |
| Ong Pang Boon | 58 | Telok Ayer | 1959 | Merged into Kreta Ayer | |
| Phua Bah Lee | 56 | Tampines | 1968 | Split into three different wards | |
| S. Rajaratnam | 73 | Kampong Glam | 1959 | Loh Meng See | |
| Tang See Chim | 56 | Chua Chu Kang | 1966 | Low Seow Chay | |
| Toh Chin Chye | 68 | Rochor | 1959 | Merged into Kampong Glam | |
| Yeo Choo Kok | 52 | Delta | 1970 | Merged into Kim Seng |
With the Singapore Democratic Party leader's Chiam See Tong sole victory in the seat of Potong Pasir, two Non-Constituency MP seats were offered to former solicitor-general and Law Society president, Francis Seow and veteran politician Dr Lee Siew Choh, both of which were standing under the WP ticket in Eunos Group Representation Constituency; their campaign was notable for criticizing PAP for alleged dubious financial circumstances; in response Minister of State Tay Eng Soon went to lead their PAP team for Eunos. Despite losing by a narrow margin of 49.1%-50.9%, WP were eligible for the NCMP; however, Seow fled the country on 17 December to avoid arrest and was disqualified from the post while Lee took up the offer and became Singapore's first NCMP, marking Lee's return to Parliament after 25 years since his last stint as a PAP and BS legislator.