The Singapore Parliament has a term of 5 years but may be dissolved at any time before the expiry of its 5-year term by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. The general election must be held within 3 months of the dissolution of the Parliament.

There are 2 types of electoral divisions or constituencies in Singapore:

• Single Member Constituency (SMC)
• Group Representation Constituency (GRC)

Definitions:

• A Rejected Vote means a ballot paper which has been handed by the election official to an elector to cast his vote but which, at the close of the poll, has been found in the ballot box unmarked or so improperly marked it cannot be counted.
• A Spoilt Ballot Paper means a ballot paper which, on polling day, has not been deposited in the ballot box, but has been found by the election official to be spoilt or improperly printed or which has been handed by the election official to an elector to cast his vote, and (a) has been spoilt in marking by the elector, and (b) has been handed back to the election official and exchanged for another.

More information on the parliamentary elections can be found here:

• http://www.eld.gov.sg/elections_parliamentary.html
• http://www.eld.gov.sg/elections_type_electoral.html