our study tribeby sobena
How Significant Was the 1959 Election?Chapter 7 · Video 11 of 11

How Significant Was the 1959 Election?

How Significant Was the 1959 Election?

On polling day, 30 May 1959, people queued in the rain, and 89% of eligible voters turned out. These notes apply the two tests of , whether an event and whether it is , to judge the 1959 election, trace the road from 1945 that led to it, and weigh its limits.

What Is Historical Significance?

People with umbrellas queueing in the rain outside a polling station
Queueing to vote, 30 May 1959. Illustration drawn for Our Study Tribe.
  • A judgement: historians assess how significant past events were; significance depends on who is judging and the criteria used.
  • Test 1, change: did it result in change, with far-reaching consequences for society?
  • Test 2, memory: is it remembered, so that it was, or still is, memorable for a group of people?

How Significant Was the 1959 Election?

Test 1: It Resulted in Change
  1. PointThe 1959 election was significant because it brought far-reaching and lasting change.
  2. EvidenceIt was the first election in which all 51 seats were elected, and it brought full internal self-government. It also brought the PAP to power, and the PAP went on to win the next three general elections. One Singaporean historian described it as the close of a successful chapter in the struggle against colonial rule.
  3. ElaborationThe election transferred control of domestic affairs from the British to an elected local government, and the it gave the PAP allowed the party to consolidate its strength, shaping who would govern Singapore for decades.
  4. LinkHence, by the test of change, the 1959 election was highly significant.
Test 2: It Is Remembered
  1. PointThe 1959 election was significant because it was memorable for the people who lived through it.
  2. EvidenceRegistered voters rose from about 22,000 in 1948 to nearly 590,000 in 1959. An election official recalled candidates visiting homes and holding rallies day and night, even in back lanes, and a PAP helper remembered that everyone went to vote willingly, with a father and son in his street arguing over which party to support.
  3. ElaborationFor the first time, almost every adult took part in choosing the government, so the election became a shared and personal experience that people recalled vividly, as these accounts show.
  4. LinkThus, by the test of memory, the 1959 election was significant as the first time many people's votes truly counted.
The Road to 1959
  1. PointThe 1959 election was the culmination of developments that began in 1945.
  2. Evidence1948, the first election; 1950, the Maria Hertogh Riots; 1954, the Anti-National Service Riots; 1955, the Rendel Constitution and the Hock Lee Bus Riots; 1956, the failed First Merdeka Talks and the Chinese Middle School riots; 1957, the successful Second Merdeka Talks.
  3. ElaborationThese events show two forces working together: anti-colonial discontent, expressed in strikes and riots, pressured the British to concede, while growing political participation through elections created the channel for power to pass to locals.
  4. LinkTherefore, the 1959 election marked the point at which these forces finally achieved self-government.

Making a Judgement

  • Very significant: by both tests, the 1959 election stands out, transforming how Singapore was governed and remaining memorable to those who lived through it.
  • The limits: Britain still controlled defence and foreign affairs, so Singapore was not yet an independent nation.
  • The big picture: events abroad and hardship at home fuelled discontent with British rule, expressed both in strikes and riots and in growing political participation.

In One Sentence

  • The 1959 election was highly significant because it brought full internal self-government and the PAP to power, and it was remembered as the first time many people's votes truly counted, though Singapore was not yet independent.

Think About It

  1. Which test do you find more convincing for the 1959 election: change or memory? Explain why.
  2. Registered voters grew from about 22,000 in 1948 to nearly 590,000 in 1959. What does that change tell you about how politics in Singapore had changed?
  3. Singapore was still not independent after 1959. Does that make the election less significant? Explain your view.