Today, we have two guests. We are halfway through GE2020, and we therefore have a conversation about Nomination Day, the televised English debate, as well as mid-campaign impressions. Dhevarajan Devadas is a public policy researcher and historian, and Mohamed Salihin Subhan is a political science PhD student in the University of British Columbia.

That Singapore continues to report new coronavirus cases is a reminder that GE2020 was called in the middle of a pandemic. Nine cases were confirmed in the cluster of Block 111, Tampines Street 11, and now testing has been offered to 58 households in the same section.

Today, we speak to young environmentalist Woo Qiyun, who recently graduated from the National University of Singapore. The 23-year-old shares more about how she’s been following the election – through reading manifestoes, watching speeches, and compiling her own resources – as well as her activism and interactions with family and friends.

Today, we speak to two young voters who volunteer for the political parties. I speak first with 25-year-old Joel Sherard Chow, who volunteers with the Workers’ Party, and then with 26-year-old Clarence Ching, who volunteers with the People’s Action Party. We wanted to learn more about how they started and their experiences, walking the ground.

Today, seven political parties addressed Singaporeans in the first party political broadcast of GE2020. There were no surprises. Everyone agreed that with the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic recession in its wake, Singaporeans face very tough times ahead.