Are you logged out of your ex’s Netflix account? Why not entertain yourself by following the presidential elections this year?
The presidential elections could start any time from tomorrow (13 June) onwards.
Presidential Elections May Commence Any Time From 13 June as Applications for Certificate of Eligibility Open
Let’s break it down for you. For the presidential elections to commence, there must be eligible candidates. For the candidates to be eligible, these candidates must attain a Certificate of Eligibility.
Yes, the Certificate of Eligibility is also abbreviated as COE, but it’s not that COE lah. You’re not eligible to run for President just because you own a vehicle—you need a colonial house instead.
Just kidding.
Anyway, since applications for the Certificate of Eligibility are commencing tomorrow (13 June), the presidential elections could start any time from tomorrow onwards.
You know what that means—our holiday is coming soon. And we might also see Ooi Boon Ewe and Shirwin Eu back on the news soon.
Applying for the Certificate of Eligibility: How it Works
For all our confused readers, the Certificate of Eligibility isn’t to play play one hor. There are several conditions a prospective candidate must fulfil before they can even qualify for the certificate.
First, you must have held a senior public office or run a company with a minimum of S$500 million in shareholders’ equity for at least three years.
Essentially, you must have done something with your life lah.
You must also be a Singapore citizen, at least 45 years old on Nomination Day and not belong to any political party.
Shou Zi Chew supporters, we regret to inform you that the businessman is only 40 years old—wait for the next presidential elections bah.
Last, the Presidential Elections Committee must be satisfied that you’re a person of integrity, good character and reputation. Only then will you attain the Certificate of Eligibility.
The committee is chaired this year by the Public Service Commission’s chairman Mr Lee Tzu Yang. You better hope you didn’t accidentally throw a fake cockroach at anyone on the committee in primary school.
The Second Piece of the Puzzle: Submitting the Community Declaration
However, the Certificate of Eligibility is not all that you need to be eligible to run for the presidential elections.
You’ll also need to submit a community declaration to the Community Committee, chaired by the Public Hygiene Council’s chairman Mr Edward D’Silva.
Haven’t even become President already got so much saikang… Sian.
A community declaration is literally what it sounds like—a declaration of which community you’re from, either the Chinese, Malay, Indian or Other Minority communities.
Don’t think you belong in any of the listed communities? You can say so in your community declaration. The Community Committee will decide whether to accept your “no declaration” declaration.
If they don’t, you must “suck thumb” and submit another community declaration under one of the listed communities lor.
Don’t complain troublesome—who ask you want to run for President?
Anyway, the main point of the community declaration is to keep tabs on when the next reserved election, otherwise known as the “Halimah Yacob”-esque election, will be held.
If you recall what happened in 2017, the presidential election was reserved for members of the Malay community as members of that community have not held the presidency since 1970.
If five presidential terms have passed without members of a particular community holding the presidency, there will be a reserved election. The upcoming election is an open one.
Presidential Elections Should Be Held Within the Next Three Months
So, what we know now is that the presidential elections could happen any time from tomorrow onwards. However, there’s one more requirement: it must occur within the next three months.
According to the Elections Department Singapore (ELD), the presidential elections must be held before incumbent President Halimah Yacob pang gang on 13 September.
If presidential elections aren’t held by then, they must be held shortly after.
This means that within the next three months, we’ll know whether SM Tharman will become President Tharman instead.
Haven’t heard the news of SM Tharman announcing his intention to run for President yet? Have you been living under a rock?
Anyway, watch this video to find out more about why SM Tharman might become President Tharman soon (yes, our walkover prediction has just been proven wrong, but hey, at least we now know we’re getting a holiday):
Until the Writ of Election specifying the details of Nomination Day is issued, we won’t know when exactly we’re getting our holi—I mean, when the presidential elections are happening.
Macam watching a movie sia. The whole of Singapore is on the edge of their seats now.
Regardless, after the Writ of Election is issued, the timeline for the presidential election will run tight. Prospective candidates need to start getting down to business—applications for the Certificate of Eligibility and submission of community declarations close on the fifth day after the Writ of Election is issued.
The Presidential Elections Committee must also notify the certificate applicants of their application results and issue the certificates to successful applicants before the eve of Nomination Day.
Aiya, remember to issue a certificate to SM Tharman can already.
Just for you to have an idea of what the election’s timeline will be like, in the 2017 presidential elections, applications for the Certificate of Eligibility commenced on 1 June. The Writ of Election was not issued until 28 August, and Nomination Day was on 13 September.
Maybe the Writ of Election was issued nearly three months after certificate applications opened because PM Lee wanted to celebrate NDP first. Priorities.
To find out more about what you can expect from this year’s presidential election, watch this video:
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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