Halimah Yacob

Her Excellency Madame Halimah Yacob DUT[1]
Halimah in 2019
8th President of Singapore
In office 14 September 2017 – 14 September 2023
Prime Minister	Lee Hsien Loong
Preceded by	Tony Tan
Succeeded by	Tharman Shanmugaratnam
Parliamentary offices 7th Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore In office 14 January 2013 – 7 August 2017 Deputy Charles Chong Seah Kian Peng Lim Biow Chuan Preceded by Michael Palmer Succeeded by Tan Chuan-Jin Member of Parliament for Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC (Marsiling) In office 11 September 2015 – 7 August 2017 Preceded by Hawazi bin Daipi (PAP) Succeeded by Zaqy Mohamad (PAP) Member of Parliament for Jurong GRC (Bukit Batok East) In office 3 November 2001 – 24 August 2015 Preceded by Constituency established Succeeded by Rahayu Mahzam (PAP)
Junior ministerial offices Minister of State for Social and Family Development In office 1 November 2012 – 14 January 2013 Minister Chan Chun Sing Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports In office 21 May 2011 – 1 November 2012 Minister Chan Chun Sing
Personal details
Born	(1954-08-23) 23 August 1954 (age 70) Colony of Singapore (present-day Singapore)
Political party	Independent
Other political affiliations	People's Action Party (2001–2017)
Spouse	Mohammed Abdullah Alhabshee ​ ​ (m. 1980)​
Children	5
Alma mater	University of Singapore (LLB) National University of Singapore (LLM)
Signature

Halimah binti Yacob (born 23 August 1954) is a distinguished Singaporean politician and lawyer who held the office of the eighth president of Singapore from 2017 to 2023, making history as the first woman to serve in this role.

A former member of Singapore's long-dominant People's Action Party (PAP), Halimah served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Bukit Batok East division of the Jurong Group Representation Constituency (GRC) from 2001 to 2015 and then for the Marsiling division of the Marsiling–Yew Tee GRC from 2015 to 2017. She made history as Singapore's first female speaker of parliament, a position she held from 2013 to 2017.

Following a constitutional amendment in 2017, the presidential election that year was specifically reserved for candidates from the Malay community. Halimah resigned from the PAP and became an independent candidate—one of the eligibility requirements for running for the presidency—and subsequently won in an uncontested election, as her rivals did not meet the necessary qualifications. During her presidency, Halimah utilised her discretionary powers to approve emergency funding for Singapore's response to the COVID-19 pandemic and advocated for women's rights. She chose not to seek re-election in the 2023 presidential election, concluding her term on 13 September 2023, after which she was succeeded by Tharman Shanmugaratnam.