Survival of the Workers’ Party in Singapore’s One-Dominant-Party System
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
This research aims to study the evolution and survival of the Workers’ Party (WP) within the one-dominant-party system in Singapore, where the People’s Action Party (PAP) has ruled the country for decades and marginalized opposition parties. However, the Workers’ Party has not only survived but elevated to the leading opposition party. This qualitative research depends on a documentary research method in studying the evolution and identifying key factors for the survival from key incidents, election results, and developments since the establishment in 1957 to the 2025 general election within the framework of the one-dominant party system. The finding shows the evolution of the Worker’s Party can be divided into three phases: (1) the pioneer era (between 1957-1971); (2) the vanguard era (between 1971-2001); and (3) the credible institutionalized opposition era (between 2001-2025). It also demonstrates that its survival is driven from internal and external factors of the one-dominant party system. The internal factors include public dissatisfaction with government policies, low popularity of the government, an increase in the cost of living. The external factors come from strategies, leadership and effective recruitment of the Workers’ Party.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Copyright
Connexion: Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences has an exclusive right to publish the accepted articles in any form. However, the author retains the following rights:
1. The right to the ownership of the article;
2. The right to use all or part of the article in his/her other works;
3. The right to re-produce the article for personal use or for use in the author’s organisation, in which case the author must obtain permission from Connexion: Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences;
4. The right to make copies of all or part of the work for educational use or for the author’s use in classroom teaching; and
5. The right to include the work (both the preprinted and printed versions) in an institutional repository.
References
Abdullah, W. J. (2025). Flight to quality and a new Prime Minister’s mandate: Singapore’s 2025 general election. Pacific Affairs, 98(3), 575-586. https://doi.org/10.5509/2025983-art8
Arian, A., & Barnes, S. H. (1974). The dominant party system: A neglected model of democratic stability. The Journal of Politics, 36(3), 592-614. https://doi.org/10.2307/2129246
Barr, M. D. (2003) J. B. Jeyaretnam: Three decades as Lee Kuan Yew’s bête noir. Journal of Contemporary Asia, 33(3), 299-317. https://doi.org/10.1080/00472330380000201
Bellows, T. (1970). The people’s action party of Singapore: Emergence of a dominant party system. Yale University.
Business Times. (2018). Pritam Singh elected unopposed as Workers’ Party leader. https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/international/pritam-singh-elected-unopposed-workers-party-leader
Carroll, J. (2024). One party democracy: Explaining the LDP’s electoral dominance in Japan. Araneum: Richmond Journal of American & Global Affairs, 2(1), 65-74. https://doi.org/10.26736/ar.02.01.05
Case, W. (2021). Late Malaysian politics: From single party dominance to multi party mayhem. https://rsis.edu.sg/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/RSIS-Working-Paper-335-Late-Malaysian-Politics-From-Single-Party-Dominance-to-Multi-Party-Mayhem.pdf
Chan, H. C. (1976). The dynamics of one-party dominance the PAP at the grass-roots. Singapore University Press.
Chan, H. C. (1982). Singapore in 1981: Planned changes, unplanned consequences. Asian Survey, 22(2), 219-225. https://doi.org/10.2307/2643949
Chan, Y. K. (2021). Hougang: The origins of a “safe” alternative constituency in Singapore. Asia-Pacific Research Forum, 69, 97-123.
Chin, J. (1997). Anti-Christian Chinese chauvinists and HDB upgrades: The 1997 Singapore general election. Southeast Asia Research, 5(3), 217-241. https://www.jstor.org/stable/23746945
Chin, J. (2007). The general election in Singapore, May 2006. Electoral Studies, 26, 703-707.
Chua, E. H. C. (2020). Post-political elections: Opposition party rallies as popular mobilisations in Singapore. Asian Studies Review, 44(3), 474-493. https://doi.org/10.1080/10357823.2019.1693978
Crossette, B. (1986). Opposition leader in Singapore jailed and loses his seat. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/1986/11/16/world/opposition-leader-in-singapore-jailed-and-loses-his-seat.html
Er, L. P. (2015). New normal or anomaly? 2015 general election and PAP’s electoral landslide. In T. Lee & K. YL. Tan (Eds.), Change in voting: Singapore’s 2015 general election. Ethos Books.
Fuangkasem, K. (2011). Singapore under the three leaders (สิงคโปร์ภายใต้สามผู้นำ). October Printinghouse. (in Thai)
Giollabhuí, S. M. (2019). How does an opposition party become successful in a dominant party system? The case of South Africa. African Affairs, 118(470), 147-167, https://doi.org/10.1093/afraf/ady036
Hiok, L. B. (1985). Singapore inc1984: A time for reflection and a time for change. Southeast Asian Affairs, pp. 297-305. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27908532
Huxley, T. (2002). Singapore in 2001: Political continuity despite deepening recession. Asian Survey, 42(1), 156-164. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/as.2002.42.1.156
Ibrahim, Z. (2021). Singapore’s opposition: surprises or more of the same?. Singapore Perspectives, pp. 29-38. https://doi.org/10.1142/9789811225734_0005
Inter-Parliamentary Union. (1999). Guidelines on the rights and duties of the opposition in parliament. https://www.ipu.org/resources/publications/reference/2016-07/rights-and-duties-opposition-in-parliament
Khoo, V. (2019). “Ownself check ownself”: The role of Singlish humor in the rise of the opposition politician in Singapore. Colorado Research in Linguistics, 24. https://doi.org/10.33011/cril.24.1.5
Kuriwaki, S., Horiuchi, Y., & Smith, D.M. (2025). Winning elections with unpopular policies: Valence advantage and single-party dominance in Japan. Quarterly Journal of Political Science, 20(4), 439-476. https://doi.org/10.1561/100.00024134
Kurohi, R. (2021). How breaches of privilege here and abroad have been dealt with. The Strait Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/politics/how-breaches-of-privilege-here-and-abroad-have-been-dealt-with
Li, J., & Elklit. (1999). The Singapore general election 1997: Campaigning strategy, results, and analysis. Electoral Studies, 18(2), 199-216. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0261-3794(98)00027-4
Mauzy, D. K., & Milne, R. S. (2022). Singapore politics under the People’s Action Party. Routledge.
Mutalib, H. (1992). Singapore’s 1991 general election. Southeast Asian Affairs, pp. 299-309. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27912054
Mutalib, H. (2004). Parties and politics: A study of opposition parties and the PAP in Singapore. Marshall Cavendish Academic.
Oliver, S., & Ostwald, K. (2018). Explaining elections in Singapore: Dominant party resilience and valence politics. Journal of East Asian Studies, 18(2), 129-156. https://doi.org/10.1017/jea.2018.15
Oliver, S., & Ostwald, K. (2020). Singapore’s pandemic election. Pacific Affairs, 93(4), 759-780. https://doi.org/10.5509/2020934759
Ong, E. (2025). Valence rules: Explaining opposition party performance in Singapore’s 2025 general elections. Pacific Affairs, 98(4). https://pacificaffairs.ubc.ca/perspectives/valence-rules-explaining-opposition-party-performance-in-singapores-2025-general-elections/
Ong, T., & Tim, M. H. (2014). Singapore’s 2011 general elections and beyond: Beating the PAP at its own game. Asian Survey, 54(4), 749-772. https://doi.org/10.1525/as.2014.54.4.749
Pempel, T. J. (Ed.). (1990). Uncommon democracies: The one-party dominant regimes. Cornell University Press.
Portmann, K. (2011). A buzz in cyberspace, but no net-revolution: The role of the internet in Singapore’s 2011 elections. Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Pakistan Office. https://collections.fes.de/publikationen/ident/fes/08747
Sen, N. J., Sin, Y., & Yuen-C, T. (2018). Pritam Singh elected new WP chief: Current phase of leadership renewal completed, says Low Thia Khiang. The Strait Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/politics/pritam-singh-elected-unopposed-as-leader-of-wp
Singh, B. (2016). Singapore’s 2015 general election: Explaining PAP’s resounding win’. The Round Table, 105(2), 129-140. https://doi.org/10.1080/00358533.2016.1154387
Singh, B. (2017). Understanding Singapore Politics. World Scientific.
Solinger, D. J. (2001). Ending One-Party Dominance: Korea, Taiwan, Mexico. Journal of Democracy, 12(1), 30-42. https://doi.org/10.1353/jod.2001.0017
Tan, K. P. (2010). Singapore: A depoliticized civil society in a dominant-party system?. Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung.
Tan, E. K. B. (2012). Singapore: Transitioning to a “new normal” in a post-Lee Kuan Yew era. Southeast Asian Affairs, 2012, 265-282. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41713999
Tan, E. K. B. (2020). Singapore’s Covid-19 general election: Political breakthrough amid a generational crisis?. The Round Table, 109(5), 622-623. https://doi.org/10.1080/00358533.2020.1820213
Theng, K. H. (2011). Upset over NCMP nomination: Eric Tan walks out on Workers’ Party. The New Paper, p. 11. https://news.smu.edu.sg/sites/news.smu.edu.sg/files/wwwsmu/news_room/smu_in_the_news/2011/sources/TNP_20110514_2.pdf
Woon, C. Y. (2017). Internet spaces and the (re)making of democratic politics: The case of Singapore’s 2011 general election. GeoJournal, 83, 1133-1150. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10708-017-9815-6
Workers’ Party. (n.d.). History of Workers’ Party. Retrieved January 10, 2026, from https://www.wp.sg/history
Yng, N. J., & Ng, K. (2015). WP introduces manifesto; calls for minimum wage. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/wp-introduces-manifesto-calls-minimum-wage-5817931
Youjin, L. (2020). A man whose ‘heart is with Singapore’: A look back at Low Thia Khiang’s political career with Workers’ Party. https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/man-whose-heart-singapore-look-back-low-thia-khiangs-political-career-workers-party-5675601?fbclid=IwAR2q3LAH2Ggcl33iwN43_wC3Oxp1nztYfbMBmCgT0Oe-Qs9iPFpIPvxyrKk
