Democratic Party (Singapore)
Encyclopedia
- Not to be confused with Singapore Democratic PartySingapore Democratic PartyThe Singapore Democratic Party is an opposition political party in Singapore.The party was founded in 1980 by Chiam See Tong, who as Secretary-General became the party's first Member of Parliament in 1984 when he was elected as MP for Potong Pasir...
, which was formed by Chiam See TongChiam See TongChiam See Tong is a politician and lawyer from Singapore. He is the country's longest-serving opposition Member of Parliament . Between 1984 and 2011, he represented the constituency of Potong Pasir in Singapore's Parliament....
in the 1980s. This article is about the party that existed only in the pre-independence era.
The Democratic Party (abbrev
Abbreviation
An abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. Usually, but not always, it consists of a letter or group of letters taken from the word or phrase...
: DP; ; ;) was a shortlived party that was registered on 11 February 1955 by the people from Mandarin-speaking bourgeois who were members of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce.
Formation, the rise and the fall of DP
At the time, it was one of the two largest parties in Singapore (The other party was Progressive PartyProgressive Party (Singapore)
The Singapore Progressive Party , or just, the Progressive Party is a now defunct political party that was formed on August 25, 1947. It won the Legislative Assembly general elections in 1948 by winning half of the contested seats in the Legislative Assembly, 3 out of 6...
(PP), who won the 1948 elections
Singapore general election, 1948
The Legislative Council General Elections was the first election to be held in Singapore, taking place on 21 March 1948 when six of the 22 seats on the Legislative Council were open for popular voting, albeit only for British subjects. The election was announced on 1 February, and nominations were...
) as both parties had sent more than 20 candidates out of the total 25 seats before the emergence of Labor Front
Labour Front
The Labour Front was a political party in Singapore. It was founded before the 1955 legislative council elections by David Saul Marshall, Singapore's first chief minister in 1955 and Lim Yew Hock, Singapore's second chief minister...
who became the ruling party after the 1955 elections
Singaporean general election, 1955
The 1955 Legislative Assembly General Elections was held in Singapore on 2 April 1955 to elect twenty-five elective seats on the Legislative Assembly...
(That sent 17 candidates and won 10 of them) and the People's Action Party
People's Action Party
The People's Action Party is the leading political party in Singapore. It has been the city-state's ruling political party since 1959....
that was the ruling party of Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
after 1959 elections.
Despite being the two largest parties in Singapore, the Democratic and Progressive parties decided to merge in order to form the Liberal Socialist Party
Liberal Socialist Party
The Liberal Socialist Party is a defunct political party which was formerly active within the politics of Singapore. It was formed in the 1950s from the merger of the Singapore Progressive Party and the Democratic Party , the latter not to be confused with the Singapore Democratic Party...
(LSP) at 5 February 1956, only to be wound up a few years later.