Election Advertising Rules in Singapore: What Brands, Agencies and Influencers Must Know

Last updated 2 October 2026 — by Adrian Tan, SDM. General information for marketers, not legal advice. Provisions are taken from the Parliamentary Elections Act 1954 and the Parliamentary Elections (Election Advertising) Regulations 2024 as they stood on Singapore Statutes Online on 2 October 2026, and from Elections Department, MHA and MDDI publications.

Most brands assume election law is for political parties. In Singapore that assumption is risky, because of one sentence in the Parliamentary Elections Act. Content is “election advertising” if it can reasonably be regarded as intended to promote a party or candidate, or to enhance their standing with voters, even though it can reasonably be regarded as intended to achieve any other purpose as well, and even if it names no party or candidate at all.

Put plainly, a post can be marketing and election advertising at the same time. Once it is election advertising, a set of rules applies to whoever publishes it, including companies, agencies, media buyers and influencers. Paying to boost it can be an offence. Publishing it without the right “published by” details can be a corrupt practice that costs the people responsible the right to vote for seven years. Running a light-hearted poll about it can be an arrestable offence.

No election is scheduled as of October 2026. That makes now the right time to put a policy in place, because the rules switch on the day the Writ of Election is issued, often with only days of notice. In the 2025 General Election the Writ was issued on 15 April and Polling Day was 3 May. This guide explains what the law covers, the six rules that matter to commercial marketers, worked examples and a checklist for your team and agency.

When the rules apply

Election advertising rules run on three overlapping periods, all defined in section 61S(1) and section 61C of the Act.

The law also reaches across borders. Section 61S(6) and (7) catch conduct wholly outside Singapore if the offence happens partly here, for example content sent electronically into Singapore. A regional team posting from Kuala Lumpur or Sydney to a Singapore audience is inside the rules.

What counts as election advertising

Section 2 of the Act, in its current form since 14 June 2024, defines election advertising as any information or material that can reasonably be regarded as intended to promote or procure the electoral success of identifiable parties or candidates, or otherwise to enhance their standing with the electorate. Online election advertising is simply election advertising made accessible from the internet.

Three features of the definition matter for marketers:

• A commercial purpose does not take content out. The definition expressly applies even where the material can reasonably be regarded as intended to achieve another purpose as well. A promotion built around praise for a candidate’s policy is still caught.
• Naming is not required. Material can be election advertising without naming any party or candidate, if the audience would identify them. Party colours, slogans and symbols can be enough.
• “Publish” is wide. It means making something available to the public in whatever form and by whatever means, including the internet.

The Act then sorts publishers into groups. A “third party” is anyone who is not a candidate, a party fielding candidates, or a candidate’s election agent. Every brand, agency, media buyer, platform user and influencer is a third party. And section 61S(1) defines “money’s worth” to include services, goods, virtual vouchers, credits and tokens. Gifted products, free services and ad credits all count as payment.

Rule 1: third parties may not run paid online election advertising

This is the rule most likely to catch a marketing team. Under section 61K, a third party commits an offence if, during the election period, it publishes online election advertising whose production or publication is paid for, in money or money’s worth, by anyone. The third party must know, or ought reasonably to have known, that the content is election advertising and that it is paid. The penalty is a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to 12 months’ jail.

Look at how that maps onto ordinary marketing activity:

• Boosting a post that comments favourably on a candidate is paid publication.
• An influencer paid or gifted to post content that enhances a party’s standing is paid production and publication.
• An agency producing content for a candidate is paid production, even if the candidate’s own account publishes it.

The only defence in section 61K(3) is written authority signed by the candidate or election agent, in Form 22 or Form 23. The Elections Department’s guidance for candidates is explicit that third parties need this “Authorisation by Candidate / Election Agent” form before publishing paid ads, and that boosting, reposting, sharing and resharing existing ads is subject to the same requirements as publishing fresh online election advertising and must also be declared.

Separately, section 83 requires written authority for “election activity” on behalf of a candidate, issued on or after Nomination Day (section 83(2)), with a penalty of up to $2,000 and/or 12 months (section 83(5)). Unpaid online publishing by a third party is excluded from election activity by section 83(8A).

If your agency works for a candidate

Agencies hired by candidates or parties carry extra paperwork. Section 61F(3) and regulation 19 of the 2024 Regulations require candidates and parties to declare every online election advertisement to the Returning Officer through the ELD website, either within 12 hours of the campaign period starting or before the ad is first published. Paid ads must be declared with the identity of each publisher, the dates of publication and the fact that each publisher was paid. Those declarations are published on the ELD website.

In practice the agency is the only party that holds this information, so it must supply it on time. The Regulations also set rules for specific channels: email election ads must carry an unsubscribe address that works for at least 14 days (regulation 18), and chatrooms and forums need appointed moderators and recorded content (regulation 17). If you run a candidate’s CRM or chat groups, build these in before Nomination Day. Our guide to WhatsApp marketing in Singapore covers the commercial rules that still apply alongside.

Rule 2: election advertising must say who published it

Section 61B requires election advertising published during the election period to carry “published by” details. Under section 61B(3) these must name everyone who authorised publication, approved the content or directed it. If the ad is paid for, it must also say so and name every payer, and regulation 16 requires wording such as “paid for by” or “sponsored by”. The details go on the ad itself or, if that is not reasonably practicable, in an online location directly accessible from it.

Three points make this rule stricter than it looks:

• Knowledge is not required. Section 61B(5) says the prosecution does not need to prove the accused knew the material was election advertising.
• It is a corrupt practice. Section 61B(6) carries a fine of up to $1,000 and/or 12 months’ jail, plus seven years’ loss of the right to vote and to stand for election. Printers are equally liable (section 61B(7)). The Public Prosecutor must consent to a prosecution (section 61B(8)).
• The main exemption covers individuals, not companies. Section 61B(9)(c) exempts an online post by a Singapore citizen who is not a candidate or agent, acting at nobody’s direction and unpaid. A company’s own post is not covered by that exemption, even if no money changes hands.

The other exemptions in section 61B(9) are narrow: private or domestic communications, closed internal business tools, news by licensed news agencies, and books and art sold at commercial value that were planned regardless of the election.

Rule 3: cooling-off means stop, including scheduled posts

Section 61C bans publishing or displaying election advertising during the cooling-off period, where the publisher knew or ought to have known it was election advertising. The penalty is a fine of up to $1,000 and/or 12 months. Section 61D exempts private communications, closed business tools, licensed news, and posters and online ads that were lawfully in place before cooling-off began and are not altered or moved.

For GE2025, ELD’s media release set out what that meant in practice. Cooling-off ran from midnight on 2 May 2025 to the close of polling on 3 May. Publishing election advertising “not already lawfully displayed or published” was banned, and so was “sharing/re-sharing/re-posting/boosting” online election advertising. E-rallies and livestreams were banned too. Lawful online ads already in place before cooling-off could stay, and private chats with family or a small group of friends were exempt.

Section 80 adds a broader rule for Polling Day and its eve: no one may, “by word, message, writing or in any other manner”, try to persuade anyone to vote or not to vote for a candidate. The penalty is a fine of up to $1,500 and/or 12 months, and it is an arrestable offence. For brands, the practical risk is the content calendar. A post scheduled weeks earlier that touches on the election can go live on Cooling-off Day without anyone looking at it.

Rule 4: no election polls, including “fun” ones

Section 78C bans publishing the results of an election survey, “or any content purporting to be any result of an election survey”, from the issue of the Writ to the close of polling. An election survey is an opinion survey of how voters will vote, or of their preferences on candidates, parties or issues linked to identifiable candidates. The penalty is a fine of up to $1,500 and/or 12 months, and it is arrestable.

This matters for social teams because engagement polls are a staple format. An Instagram Story asking “Which party has the best rally playlist?” or a radio-style “who are you voting for” vox pop with results shared afterwards looks a lot like content purporting to be a survey result. Section 78D separately bans exit polls on Polling Day before polls close. Section 78E gives a defence where the publication was due to circumstances beyond your control and you took all reasonable steps. The safe rule is simple: no election-related polls from the Writ until polls close.

Rule 5: foreigners and foreign entities stay out entirely

Section 61M bars a foreigner or foreign entity from publishing or displaying election advertising at any time in the election period, whether paid or not. The penalty is a fine of up to $2,000 and/or 12 months. Section 83(1)(c) separately bars foreigners and foreign entities from taking part in election activity, and section 83(6) bars candidates from authorising them.

The definitions are what matter for agencies. A “foreigner” is an individual who is not a Singapore citizen, which includes permanent residents and employment pass holders. A “foreign entity” is an entity constituted under foreign law, or one whose principal place of business is in a foreign country, “even if registered” or incorporated in Singapore. On a plain reading, a Singapore-incorporated agency run from Singapore is not automatically a foreign entity, but a regional hub run from abroad may be. That is our reading of the text, not an official ruling, and an agency in any doubt should take advice before accepting election work.

Enforcement in GE2025 shows the rule is used. On 25 April 2025 MHA and ELD announced that IMDA, acting as an Assistant Returning Officer, had issued corrective directions to Meta to block Singapore users’ access to Facebook posts by foreigners, including two figures from a Malaysian political party and a former Singaporean who had become an Australian citizen. The joint statement said: “Foreigners must not direct, fund or in any way influence Singapore’s elections.”

Rule 6: no realistic AI depictions of candidates

Section 61MA, added by the Elections (Integrity of Online Advertising) (Amendment) Act 2024 and in force since 22 January 2025, bans online election advertising during the election period that realistically depicts a candidate saying or doing something they did not say or do, where the content was made wholly or partly with digitally generated or manipulated content. The statute names generative AI as an example and illustrates the offence with altered words, an inserted pause and a changed backdrop. The depiction must be realistic enough that some members of the public would reasonably believe it. The penalty is a fine of up to $1,000 and/or 12 months.

Two details widen the reach. “Candidate” includes people named as prospective candidates from the Writ onwards (section 61MA(5)), so the rule bites before Nomination Day. And the defence in section 61MA(3) only protects someone who did not know and had no reason to believe the depiction was false, which will rarely help the creative team that made it. GE2025 was the first general election held under this rule. If your team uses generative tools, our guide to AI in content creation covers the wider disclosure questions.

Takedowns, defences and the foreign interference law

Under section 61N the Returning Officer can issue corrective directions to candidates, parties, connected third parties and platforms to remove election advertising or disable access to it. A social media service that fails to comply faces a fine of up to $1,000,000; anyone else, up to $1,000 and/or 12 months. Candidates can ask for a direction over a deepfake, and a false request is itself an illegal practice (section 61N(2A) and (2B)). For an advertiser, the practical consequence is that a paid campaign can be switched off by the platform mid-flight.

Section 61Q gives a general defence where the accused could not reasonably have known of the breach and took all reasonable steps once aware, or where the cause was beyond their control. It also makes all offences in these Divisions arrestable. A written election-period policy is the best evidence of reasonable steps.

Finally, the Foreign Interference (Countermeasures) Act 2021 sits in the background for agencies with foreign clients. Its hostile information campaign provisions came into force on 7 July 2022 and its provisions on politically significant persons, which include parties, MPs and election candidates, on 29 December 2023. The offences target activity on behalf of a foreign principal that is covert or involves deception. Ministers stressed at the Bill’s second reading that there must be an element of secrecy, so open, attributable client work is not the target, but covert astroturfing for a foreign client is.

Worked examples

An election-period checklist for brands and agencies

1. Write the policy now. Decide in advance that the brand publishes no election-related content, paid or unpaid, from the Writ until polls close, unless legal has signed off.
2. Turn off boosting of anything topical during the election period, and review active campaigns the day the Writ is issued.
3. Update influencer contracts with a clause barring election content in any paid or gifted post during an election period.
4. Freeze polls and quizzes that touch on parties, candidates or election issues.
5. Audit the scheduler for Cooling-off Day and Polling Day, including regional teams posting into Singapore.
6. Ban synthetic depictions of candidates in creative work from the Writ onwards.
7. For agencies taking candidate work: signed Form 22/23 authority before publishing, published-by and “paid for by” lines on every asset, declaration details sent on time, unsubscribe and moderation rules built in, and a check that the agency and its staff are not foreigners or a foreign entity for the work they do.
8. Keep records of the steps you took. Section 61Q’s reasonable-steps defence depends on them.

Platform-side checks are tightening too. Our guide to the online advertising code under the Online Criminal Harms Act explains the advertiser identity checks platforms must run, and our guide to brand impersonation in Singapore covers fake accounts using your name, which are common around high-attention events.

Frequently asked questions

Can a business post about an election in Singapore?
It can post neutral information, but if the content can reasonably be regarded as intended to promote a party or candidate, or enhance their standing, it is election advertising even if it also has a commercial purpose. A company’s post does not get the exemption that applies to an individual citizen’s unpaid post, so it needs published-by details, and paying to boost it is likely an offence.

Can influencers be paid to post about candidates?
Only with written authority signed by the candidate or election agent in Form 22 or 23. Without it, a third party who publishes paid online election advertising during the election period commits an offence under section 61K, and gifted products count as payment.

Is boosting a post during an election illegal?
Boosting election advertising is paid publication, so a third party needs candidate authority to do it during the election period. During cooling-off, ELD’s GE2025 guidance banned boosting, sharing and resharing election advertising altogether.

Can I run an online poll about an election?
Not from the issue of the Writ until polls close. Section 78C bans publishing election survey results or content purporting to be survey results, with a fine of up to $1,500 and/or 12 months. Exit polls are banned on Polling Day until polls close.

Are AI deepfakes of candidates banned in Singapore?
Yes, during the election period. Section 61MA bans online election advertising that realistically depicts a candidate, including a prospective candidate named after the Writ, saying or doing something they did not, where it was made with digitally generated or manipulated content.

Can a foreign-owned agency run election ads in Singapore?
A foreigner or foreign entity must not publish election advertising during the election period or take part in election activity. A foreign entity includes one constituted abroad or with its principal place of business abroad, even if registered in Singapore. An agency in any doubt should take legal advice before accepting the work.

The takeaway

Singapore’s election advertising law is built around what content does, not who makes it or why. A brand post, a boosted promotion, a gifted influencer collaboration, an engagement poll or an AI parody can all fall inside it, and several of the offences are arrestable or carry the loss of voting rights. Because the rules switch on with the Writ, often at short notice, the time to prepare is before an election is called: a written policy, contract clauses for creators and agencies, a frozen content calendar for cooling-off, and a clear line on boosting.

Our social media marketing team builds these controls into the content calendars and influencer programmes we run, and you can see how we work in our client case studies. For the wider picture, start with our guide to social media management in Singapore and our guide to influencer and KOL marketing.