The President of Singapore is Tharman Shanmugaratnam of Indian origin

Former Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam has been elected President of Singapore. Indian-origin economist Tharman is a former leader of the Singaporean political party People’s Action Party (PAP).

Voting took place in Singapore’s presidential election on Friday. After more than a century, the presidential election has been held in this country.

Singapore’s Election Commission said on Friday night that 66-year-old politician and economist Tharman Shanmugaratnam won with 70.4 percent of votes counted. Tharman will take over as Singapore’s ninth president.

Returning officer Tan Meng Dui said, “I declare Tharman Shanmugaratnam the winner of the presidency of Singapore.”

Tharman will replace the current President of Singapore, Halimah Yakub. Halima Yakub came to power in September 2017. She is the eighth and first female president of Singapore.

In Singapore, the presidency is largely decorative. The president officially oversees the city-state’s accumulated financial reserves, has the power to veto certain matters, and authorizes anti-corruption investigations. However, there are some tough conditions for contesting this post. According to the Constitution, the President is a non-partisan position.

The government of this city-state is headed by the Prime Minister. Currently PAP leader Lee Hsien Loong is the Prime Minister of Singapore. This party has been in power in Singapore since 1959.

In this year’s presidential election, Tharman Shanmugaratnam was joined by two other candidates. They are former investment officer of the country’s sovereign wealth fund GIC Ng Kok Song (75) and former chief executive of insurer ATUC Income Tan Kin Lian (75). The GIC manages Singapore’s foreign reserves.