 The " first @-@ past @-@ the @-@ post " voting system , also known as the simple plurality voting system , is used in Singapore for electing the President as well as Members of the Parliament . This system has been criticized as undemocratic because the eventual winner may have won only a minority of the total votes cast , despite having secured the most number of votes in absolute terms among all the candidates . Thus , there might be cases where an elected politician can be said to have won the mandate of only a minority of voters , and that his or her election is therefore not an accurate reflection of the voters ' will . As constitutional lawyer Sir William Wade has said : " If it is accepted that a democratic Parliament ought to represent so far as possible the preferences of the voters , this system is probably the worst that could be devised . " 
