Tharman Shanmugaratnam

Tharman Shanmugaratnam  (born 25 February 1957) is a Singaporean politician and economist. He is the President of Singapore since 2023. 

He was Senior Minister of Singapore between 2019 and 2023. He was also the Coordinating Minister for Social Policies between 2015 and 2023, and Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore between 2011 and 2023.

On 8 June 2023, Tharman announced his plans to run for president in the 2023 presidential election. He was elected on 2 September 2023 in a landslide victory, winning 70.40% of the vote.

 Early life and education 
Tharman was born in the Colony of Singapore in 1957. He studied at the Anglo-Chinese School. When he was studying there, he was not interested in his studies and was not disciplined. However, he liked to read and tried out poetry. During his time at Anglo-Chinese School, he created four poets with his schoolmates. Also, he was interested in sports and spent most of his time playing sports. He even joined his school's hockey team.

Tharman attended the London School of Economics (LSE), graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in economics. Then, Tharman went on to study at Wolfson College at the University of Cambridge. There, he completed a Master of Philosophy degree in economics.

Tharman then became a student at the Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University, where he finished a Master in Public Administration (MPA) degree. He was a student activist there. He explored left-wing politics, as he did not agree with the ruling People's Action Party back in Singapore.

Tharman was a recipient of the Lucius N. Littauer Fellows Award. The award is given to students with MPA's who showed academic excellence and leadership.In 2011, the LSE gave him an Honorary Fellowship.

 Early career 
Tharman began his working career at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in 1982, where he worked as an economist. 

He later left MAS and joined Ministry of Education as Senior Deputy Secretary for Policy.

He returned to the MAS in 1997. He became its managing director in 2001. He resigned at MAS to contest in the 2001 Singaporean general election.

 Parliamentary career 
Tharman participated in the 2001 Singaporean general election. He contested as part of a People's Action Party candidate with a five-member team at Jurong GRC. The team won 79.75% of the vote. After joining Parliament, he was appointed Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry and Senior Minister of State for Education.

In August 2003, he became part of the cabinet after he was made Minister of Education.

During the 2006 Singaporean general election, he kept his seat in Parliament. The team won with an uncontested walkover since there were no opponents. He was made Second Minister of Finance. In December 2007, he became the Minister of Finance. In March 2008, he stopped being Minister of Education.

During the 2011 Singaporean general election, he kept his seat in Parliament. The team won with 66.96% of the vote. He was made Deputy Prime Minister. He was also made Minister of Manpower.

In July 2012, he stopped being Minister of Manpower.

During the 2015 Singaporean general election, he kept his seat in Parliament. Jurong GRC led by Tharman, won 79.3% of the vote. His team's constituency got the highest percentage of votes, compared to other constituencies. After the election, he stopped being Minister of Finance. He was made Coordinating Minister for Social Policies (known then as Coordinating Minister for Social and Economic Policies).

After the election, many people wanted him to be the next Prime Minister (PM), but Tharman refused. He said, "I'm good at policymaking, I'm good at advising my younger colleagues, and at supporting the PM - not at being the PM. That's not me."

On 23 April 2019, it was announced that both Tharman will be made Senior Ministers from 1 May 2019 because of a Cabinet reshuffle. He will stop being Deputy Prime Minister. However, Tharman will stay as the Coordinating Minister for Social Policies.

During the 2020 Singaporean general election, he kept his seat in Parliament. Tharman led his Jurong GRC team and got 74.62% of the vote. Once again, his team's constituency got the highest percentage of votes.

In July 2023, Tharman stepped down as a Member of Parliament and his government positions. He also resigned as a member of the People's Action Party. He did that to become a candidate in the 2023 Singaporean presidential election.

 Presidency 
2023 election
Tharman first announced his plan to become a candidate in the 2023 Singaporean presidential election on 8 June 2023. He announced that he will leave Parliament and the People's Action Party on 7 July.

After leaving Parliament and the People's Action Party, he increased preparation for the presidential election. On 26 July 2023, Tharman launched his presidential campaign. He announced his campaign slogan, which is called "Respect for All".

On 18 August 2023, he was confirmed to be able to run for presidency after he was given the Certificate of Eligibility.

On 2 September 2023, Tharman was announced as the next president after getting 70.40% of the vote. He was elected as the ninth president of Singapore. He is the first non-Chinese presidential candidate to win in a contested presidential election in Singapore and has gotten the highest vote count in Singapore's presidential election history. He was made President on 14 September 2023.

 Notes 

References

Category:1957 births
Category:Living people
Category:Presidents of Singapore
Category:Economists
Category:Current national leaders