Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will step down next month after nearly 20 years in power, handing over to his deputy in what will be only the third leadership transition in the Asian financial hub’s modern history.
Lawrence Wong, deputy prime minister and finance minister, will become Singapore’s leader on May 15 after being named heir apparent in 2022 as part of the ruling People’s Action party’s long-standing succession plan.
The departure of Lee, the son of Singapore’s founding leader Lee Kuan Yew, also raises expectations for a consequential general election that could be held as soon as this year.
The PAP, which has governed Singapore since independence, earned one of the lowest vote shares in the 2020 election in the city-state’s history. The party has been seeking to recover public support and bolster Singapore’s status as a trade and financial hub amid an increasingly febrile geopolitical backdrop.
In a post on social media platform X, Lee, who has served as prime minister since 2004, asked Singaporeans “to give Lawrence and his team your full support, and work with them to create a brighter future for Singapore”.
Wong said in a video statement he never expected to be asked to be the prime minister when he entered politics in 2011. “I accept this responsibility with humility and a deep sense of duty,” he said.The succession marks an important moment in Singapore’s modern history, as just the third time the leadership baton has been passed since independence in 1965.
While planning to ensure a smooth succession had been under way for years, the process has also faced a number of setbacks.Lee, 72, had intended to step down before turning 70, plans that were derailed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The PAP’s succession strategy was thrown into disarray in 2021 after deputy prime minister Heng Swee Keat resigned as leader of the so-called fourth generation team, a group of younger ministers lined up to take the reins of the governing party.Wong, 51, was announced as 4G leader in April 2022, and will become only the second Singaporean premier who is not a member of the Lee family.
