Chan Chun Sing: All paid online election advertising must clearly indicate sponsorship and approval

SINGAPORE: In a written parliamentary reply on Wednesday (7 Aug), Minister Chan Chun Sing explained that all paid Online Election Advertising (OEA) must clearly indicate that it is paid for and display the full names of the individuals who financed and approved the content.

In a parliamentary inquiry, Workers’ Party Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC, Gerald Giam Yean Song, asked the Prime Minister and Minister for Finance whether political parties or candidates who pay digital content creators to post content before or during election campaigns are required to disclose these payments.

He also inquired if the content creators must declare the nature of their partnership with political parties or candidates within their posts and what the specific disclosure requirements are.

Responding to these questions on behalf of the Prime Minister, Minister Chan Chun Sing explained that under the legislation governing OEA, only political parties, candidates, their election agents, or other authorized third parties are permitted to publish paid OEA.

All payments made for any election-related expenses must be declared by the candidates and their election agents, rather than the digital content creators, and must be supported by bills and receipts as specified by the relevant laws.

Minister Chan emphasized that this includes all paid OEA, which must clearly indicate that it is paid for and display the full names of the individuals who financed and approved the content.

“The full names of the persons who approved the content of the OEA must be shown as well,” he added.

He further clarified that election expenses cover any costs incurred before, during, or after the election related to the conduct or management of the election.

Consequently, payments made to content creators during the non-election period must be declared if the content pertains to the candidate’s election conduct or management.

Outside of elections, there are rules governing the receipt of donations by all political parties, political office holders, and other politically significant individuals.

These donations must be disclosed under the Foreign Interference (Countermeasures) Act.

Additionally, political parties have other accounting and disclosure requirements.

New rules require full disclosure of election ad publishers and payments

As announced by the Elections Department (ELD) on May 31, election advertising will now be required to display the full name of every person who played an “active role” in publishing or displaying the ad.

This includes those who authorized it, approved the content, directed its publication, and, in the case of printed ads, the printer must also be identified.

For paid ads, the full names of those who paid for the ads must be displayed, along with indicators that the ad was paid for, such as the words “sponsored by.”

Paid ads encompass both monetary and non-monetary payments, whether made directly or through a third party.

The ELD stated, “This ensures a level playing field by covering various forms of payment under campaign spending limits.”

Singapore citizens who are neither candidates nor election agents and who publish online election advertising in their personal capacity without payment are exempt from this rule.

However, for online ads, the ELD specified that any amplification, such as boosting or sharing, will be subject to the same requirements as publishing new online ads, as amplifying ads increases their reach similarly to new content.

For non-online election advertising, political parties must declare the particulars of all collaterals bearing political party or party-affiliated symbols to the Returning Officer if they were displayed before the Writ of Elections is issued.

This declaration must be made within 12 hours of the Writ’s issuance and will be available online for public inspection during the same period.

Between the issuance of the Writ and the start of the campaign period, new physical ads with such symbols will not be permitted.

During the campaign period, only candidates, election agents, and individuals authorized in writing by them can publicly display election ads, and only in specific areas outlined in the Subsidiary Legislation.

The Returning Officer will oversee compliance, with the authority to direct the removal of online ads that breach election rules.

This could include disabling access to such ads for users in Singapore and halting further transmission of the materials.

The Returning Officer, a public officer appointed by the prime minister, is responsible for ensuring the impartial and smooth conduct of elections.