The Singapore 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...

: SDP; ; ; ) is an opposition

Opposition (politics)

In politics, the opposition comprises one or more political parties or other organized groups that are opposed to the government , party or group in political control of a city, region, state or country...

 political party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

 in 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...

.

The party was founded in 1980 by Chiam See Tong

Chiam See Tong

Chiam 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....

, who as Secretary-General became the party's first Member of Parliament

Parliament of Singapore

The Parliament of the Republic of Singapore and the President jointly make up the legislature of Singapore. Parliament is unicameral and is made up of Members of Parliament who are elected, as well as Non-constituency Members of Parliament and Nominated Members of Parliament who are appointed...

 (MP) in 1984 when he was elected as MP for Potong Pasir

Potong Pasir Single Member Constituency

Potong Pasir Single Member Constituency is a Single Member Constituency in the central region of Singapore.-Location:The SMC encompasses Potong Pasir, Lorong 8 Toa Payoh and Tannery...

. At the 1991 general election, the party's best ever performance ever, two further SDP members were elected to Parliament - (Ling How Doong

Ling How Doong

Ling How Doong is a politician and lawyer from Singapore. A member of the opposition Singapore Democratic Party , he served as the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Bukit Gombak from 1991 to 1997.-Political career:...

 and Cheo Chai Chen

Cheo Chai Chen

Cheo Chai Chen is a politician and businessman from Singapore. He served as the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Nee Soon Central from 1991 to 1997, when he was a member of the Singapore Democratic Party...

), giving the party a total of three MPs.