SINGAPORE, March 3 (Xinhuanet) -- Singapore released revised electoral boundaries Friday, hinting that the next general elections might be just around the corner.
According to Channel NewsAsia report, the numbers of the Single Member Constituencies (SMCs) and the Group Representation Constituencies (GRCs) in the next parliamentary elections remain nine and 14 respectively, but one new GRC and two new SMCs have been created to replace old ones.
The number of candidates required to contest each constituency is also unveiled.
According to Singapore's laws, the registered electors residentin a SMC will vote for a single individual to be their Member of Parliament (MP) while those in a GRC will vote for a group of three to six individuals to be their MPs.
Past experience showed that elections are likely to be called within two months after the electoral boundaries are released.
So far, the registers of electors for the 23 constituencies, which include all Singapore citizens aged 21 and above on Jan. 1 2006 who are ordinarily resident in the city state, have been updated and are open for public inspection.
Singapore's last general elections were held in November 2001 and the Parliament's current five-year term will end in 2007.
Ruling out the possibility of having the next elections held inthe first quarter of this year, Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng said last month that the elections may take place within this year. Enditem
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