The Workers’ Party (WP) will likely field Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) Dennis Tan as its candidate in the Hougang Single Member Constituency (SMC) in the upcoming General Election (GE).
The Straits Times reported on Monday (22 June) that party sources have indicated that Mr Tan will be taking over from fellow party member and MP Png Eng Huat, who has served the constituency for two terms.
According to ST, it has yet to be known if Mr Png will be contesting in a different constituency or if he will be retiring from politics altogether.
TOC understands from its sources that it is indeed the case. Furthermore, Mr Tan is not an unfamiliar face in Hougang, as he has been seen walking the ground with Mr Png and has been helping out the latter in the Meet-the-People sessions since last year.
Mr Tan previously contested in Fengshan SMC in the last GE in 2015.
He won a promising 42.50 per cent of total votes cast against Cheryl Chan Weiling, the PAP candidate, which bagged him his NCMP position.
However, with the redrawing of boundaries by the Election Boundaries Review Committee, Fengshan SMC will be absorbed into the East Coast SMC in the upcoming election — similar to how his colleague Yee Jenn Jong’s ward Joo Chiat was absorbed into Marine Parade GRC in the last GE.
Hougang SMC is the longest opposition-held ward in Singapore to date, starting with former WP chief Low Thia Khiang’s victory over the ruling People’s Action Party (PAP) with over 52 per cent of votes in the 1991 GE.
