 86 years (women) President: Tharman Shanmugaratnam Image source, Getty Images Tharman Shanmugaratnam was elected president in September 2023 with a record 70.4% of the votes, comfortably beating two other candidates in the country's first contested presidential election in more than a decade. He is the first non-Chinese candidate to be directly elected to the presidency. Besides helping to helm Singapore's political leadership as finance minister and deputy prime minister, the former economist had also held top council positions at global institutions such as the United Nations and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). At one point, he was even tipped to head the IMF. The role of president is a largely ceremonial one that holds little power, apart from having some say on the use of Singapore's sizeable financial reserves. Prime minister: Lee Hsien Loong Image source, Getty Images The eldest son of Singapore's founding father Lee Kuan Yew, Lee Hsien Loong has been in office since August 2004. A former army officer and Cambridge-educated mathematician, he followed his father into politics in 1984 at the age of 32. As prime minister, Mr Lee has launched policies to build a competitive economy, introducing new programmes to upgrade the education system, investing in research and development and transforming the city-state. Image source, Getty Images As a media hub for South East Asia, Singapore is a strategic c){kind=link}
Singapore is a wealthy island city state in South East Asia. Once a British colonial trading post, today it is a thriving global financial hub.
It is one of the world’s most densely populated countries, with Chinese people account for about 75% of Singapore’s multi-racial population, with Malays and Indians making up much of the remainder.
The People’s Action Party has dominated politics since independence from Malaysia in 1965.
President: Tharman Shanmugaratnam
Tharman Shanmugaratnam was elected president in September 2023 with a record 70.4% of the votes, comfortably beating two other candidates in the country’s first contested presidential election in more than a decade. He is the first non-Chinese candidate to be directly elected to the presidency.