Singapore election rallies are back, but will they sway voters?

But the first lunchtime rally that Singapore’s first prime minister spoke at was in 1959, shortly after the republic became a fully self-governing state.

It was held in the heart of the business district and aimed at reaching English-educated office workers directly – bypassing what Lee viewed as a hostile English-language press that painted his People’s Action Party as “extremist and wild men”.

More than four decades on, rallies are making a comeback in Singapore ahead of the May 3 general election

, following a 10-year pause after pandemic-era restrictions meant they were not allowed during the last 2020 election cycle.

Since then, the political landscape has changed vastly. In the absence of face-to-face encounters, viral moments online and savvy use of social media can greatly influence voter sentiment.

Yet nothing can beat the raw energy and collective fervour of a live rally, political observers say. Viral posts and polished reels can approximate but never quite replicate physical hustings, they add.

“The thing about rallies is that many people would also go for ones that are organised by parties which are not contesting in their areas, but I think the mood at the rallies can be quite energising,” said Teo Kay Key, a research fellow at the Institute of Policy Studies’ Social Lab.