Halimah Yacob
Halimah binte Yacob is a Singaporean politician and lawyer who was the eighth president of Singapore from 2017 to 2023, making her the first woman to serve in this role after being elected uncontested in the 2017 presidential election.
A former member of the People's Action Party, Halimah served as the Member of Parliament for the Bukit Batok East division of the Jurong Group Representation Constituency from 2001 to 2015 and then for the Marsiling division of the Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC from 2015 to 2017. She became Singapore's first female speaker of parliament, a position she held from 2013 to 2017.
Following a constitutional amendment in 2016, the 2017 presidential election was reserved for candidates from the Malay community. To qualify, Halimah resigned from the PAP and her position as an MP, with her Marsiling division covered by other members of the constituency from 7 August until the next general election. She ran as an independent candidate, as required for eligibility, and subsequently won in an uncontested election because her rivals did not meet the necessary qualifications. She was sworn in on 14 September.
During her presidency, Halimah utilised her discretionary powers to approve emergency funding for Singapore's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and advocated for women's rights. She chose not to seek re-election in the 2023 presidential election, concluding her term on 13 September, after which she was succeeded by Tharman Shanmugaratnam.
Early life and education
Halimah was born on 23 August 1954 at her family home on Queen Street in Singapore during British colonial rule, to an Indian father and Malay mother. Her father was a watchman who died due to a heart attack when she was eight years old, leaving her and four siblings to be brought up by her mother. Her family was in poverty at the time of her father's death, and she helped her mother to sell nasi padang outside the former Singapore Polytechnic along Prince Edward Road.Halimah attended Singapore Chinese Girls' School and Tanjong Katong Girls' School. She graduated from the University of Singapore in 1978 with a Bachelor of Laws and was called to the Singapore Bar in 1981. Halimah earned a Master of Laws from NUS in 2001 and received an honorary Doctor of Law degree from NUS in 2016.
Trade unionist
Halimah began her career in 1978 as a legal officer at the National Trades Union Congress and was appointed director of its legal services department in 1992. She advanced within NTUC, holding roles such as assistant director of the Research Unit, Director of the Women's Development Secretariat, and Executive Secretary of the United Workers of Electronics and Electrical Industries. She also served as Assistant Secretary-General from 1999 to 2007 and Deputy Secretary-General from 2007 to 2011. In 1999, Halimah became the director of the Singapore Institute of Labour Studies. She was elected as the Workers' Vice-chairperson of the Standards Committee of the International Labour Conference in Geneva, serving from 2000 to 2002 and in 2005. Between 2003 and 2004, she was the Workers' Spokesperson for the ILC Committee on Human Resources Development and Training.Early political career
Her first political candidacy began in the 2001 general election, where she joined a five-member People's Action Party team running for Jurong GRC, led by Minister Lim Boon Heng. Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who would later succeed her as president, also made his political debut alongside her in this election. Halimah represented Bukit Batok East as an MP until 2015, after which she was elected to represent the newly-formed Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC from 2015 to 2017.During her first term, Halimah was appointed Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports. After a cabinet reshuffle in November 2012, she transitioned to serve as Minister of State for Social and Family Development. In addition to her ministerial roles, Halimah was also the chairperson of the Jurong Town Council.
On 8 January 2013, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong nominated Halimah to succeed Michael Palmer as Speaker of Parliament after Palmer resigned due to revelations of an extramarital affair. She was elected to the position on 14 January 2013, becoming the first woman in Singapore's history to hold this role. During her tenure, she also led a legislative delegation to Mexico. In January 2015, she was co-opted into the PAP's Central Executive Committee, the party's highest decision-making body.
In a strong response to ISIS-linked beliefs, Singapore detained 26 members of a foreign jihadist cell involved in extremist teachings and intervened in several cases of self-radicalised Singaporeans attempting to join ISIS in Syria in 2015. During her time as an MP, Halimah condemned ISIS's acts as un-Islamic and harmful to the image of Islam, stressing that countering its ideology is more essential than military action. She urges young people to resist extremism online and supports community gatherings to build resilience, highlighting the shared responsibility to prevent self-radicalisation. Halimah also encourages Muslim parents to stay vigilant and promote open communication within families and communities.
2017 presidential election
While speaking during the debate on the Presidential Elections Amendment Bill on 6 February 2017, Minister in the Prime Minister's Office Chan Chun Sing addressed Halimah as "Madam President" twice instead of "Madam Speaker", drawing laughter from the house and leading to widespread speculation that Halimah would be the party's preferred candidate for the reserved presidential elections.In 2016, presidential eligibility criteria were changed so that if the presidency had not been held by a member of one of Singapore's major race communities in the previous five terms, the next term would be reserved for members of that community. As a result of the change, the 2017 presidential election was reserved for Malay candidates. Later, eligibility criteria were changed again to require private sector candidates to be a senior executive of a company worth at least S$500 million. Public sector candidates who have held certain offices are automatically eligible; Halimah qualified under this rule.
To contest for the elected presidency, Halimah announced on 6 August 2017 that she would step down as speaker of parliament and MP for Marsiling–Yew Tee the following day. She also resigned from the PAP. Prime Minister Lee accepted her resignation, expressing gratitude for her contributions to labour, community, and legislative service and expressing confidence in her ability to fulfill the responsibilities of the presidency. Halimah was widely seen as the PAP's candidate for the 2017 presidential election and received endorsement from Prime Minister Lee.
In an interview on 11 August 2017, Halimah expressed her support for the reserved presidential election, saying it demonstrated Singapore's commitment to multiracialism alongside meritocracy. While some critics argued the reserved election compromised meritocracy, Halimah disagreed, emphasising that all candidates must meet the same eligibility criteria, ensuring no compromise between merit and representation. Responding to comments on the lower qualifying threshold for public sector candidates, Halimah said that the system is transparent and has been in place since 1991.
Campaign
On 25 August 2017, Halimah launched her official campaign website, including her campaign slogan "Do Good Do Together", which was criticised by many for being ungrammatical. She defended her slogan, explaining that it is meant to be catchy. In response to public queries whether Halimah broke election rules by campaigning ahead of the nomination day, the Elections Department clarified that its rule which forbids candidates from campaigning before close of nomination only applies to candidates who are nominated.Halimah's campaign expenses reached only $220,875 out of the $754,982.40 legal limit. Her expenses were used for promotional material, room rental, office supplies, food, transport and phone bills. Queries were also raised regarding Halimah's long affiliation with the PAP and perceived lack of political independence as she quit the party just one month ago to campaign in the election. Halimah responded by comparing herself to former President Ong Teng Cheong, who was also a PAP member before being elected. She also cited that she had abstained from voting in an amendment for the Human Organ Transplant Act in 2007.
Former NMP Calvin Cheng suggested that Halimah did not appear to have the professional experience needed to manage the financial reserves. According to Publichouse.sgs estimate, her financial management involvement was only about $40 million, much less than the stringent $500 million shareholders' equity requirement for private sector candidates.
Election
Being the only candidate to be issued a Certificate of Eligibility, Halimah became the eighth president of Singapore. Tan Cheng Bock, a former presidential candidate, wrote that Halimah "will occupy the most controversial presidency in the history of Singapore". The Economist described her as "popular and able".Reactions
After Halimah Yacob's resignation as the sole minority MP in Singapore's Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC, opposition parties and residents called for a by-election, which the ruling PAP government declined to hold. In response, resident Wong Souk Yee, with the support of the Singapore Democratic Party, filed a lawsuit in the High Court, arguing that the Parliamentary Elections Act requires a by-election to be held when a vacancy occurs in a GRC. Wong's lawyer cited Article 49 of the Constitution, which mandates that any vacant parliamentary seat be filled through an election, to support this claim.After the Elections Department announced that Halimah was the only possible candidate for the presidency, global media monitoring house Meltwater observed a significant increase in negative sentiment on social media surrounding the presidential elections from 11 to 12 September 2017. The sentiment observed was 83% negative and 17% positive. Following the announcement, a number of Singaporeans began using the hashtag #NotMyPresident on Facebook and Twitter to voice their disappointment. In response, The Straits Times reported that there was the use of #halimahismypresident by an "equally vocal group", urging "Singaporeans to rally round their next president".