Sri Lanka President Dissanayake’s coalition wins snap polls: Report
Sri Lanka Parliamentary Polls: More than 17 million Sri Lankans were eligible to vote, with a record 690 political parties and independent groups contesting the election across 22 districts.
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The NPP’s win is not just remarkable for its scale, but for its breadth. In a historic first, a coalition led by a predominantly Sinhala-Buddhist party secured three of six seats in Jaffna, a Tamil-majority district long dominated by Tamil nationalist parties. (AP)Sri Lankan voters handed President Anura Kumara Dissanayake a decisive victory in a snap general election, expanding his leftist coalition’s presence in parliament and granting him greater power to implement anti-poverty and anti-corruption policies, as the nation recovers from a recent economic crisis.
Dissanayake, an outsider in Sri Lankan politics long dominated by family dynasties, was elected president in September but held minimal legislative support. His Marxist-leaning coalition, the National People’s Power (NPP), previously held only three of the 225 parliamentary seats, leading him to dissolve parliament and seek a stronger mandate.
In Thursday’s vote, the NPP won 107 seats, securing nearly 62% of the vote, or 6.8 million ballots, according to the latest results from the Election Commission of Sri Lanka. This gain brings the NPP past the parliamentary majority threshold, with the possibility of a two-thirds majority within reach.
Dissanayake described the election as “a critical turning point for Sri Lanka,” adding, “There is a change in Sri Lanka’s political culture that started in September, which must continue.” Celebrations were largely subdued, though some NPP supporters set off fireworks on the outskirts of Colombo, as reported by Reuters.
Out of 225 parliamentary seats, 196 are directly elected from 22 constituencies via a proportional representation system, while the remaining 29 seats are allocated based on each party’s nationwide vote share. More than 17 million Sri Lankans were eligible to vote, with a record 690 political parties and independent groups contesting the election across 22 districts.
Dissanayake’s main challenger, Sajith Premadasa’s Samagi Jana Balawegaya party, won 28 seats, accounting for about 18% of votes. Meanwhile, the New Democratic Front, backed by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe, claimed only three seats.
This election result strengthens Dissanayake’s mandate to tackle longstanding economic issues. Although the president has executive powers, he requires parliamentary backing to appoint a full cabinet and fulfil campaign pledges to reduce taxes, support local industries, and address poverty. He has also proposed abolishing the executive presidency, a move requiring two-thirds parliamentary support.
Sri Lanka, a country of 22 million, is emerging from a severe economic crisis that saw a currency shortage push it into default in 2022, with the economy shrinking by 7.3% in 2022 and by 2.3% in 2023. An IMF bailout programme worth $2.9 billion has brought some economic stability, though high living costs remain a pressing concern for many citizens.
Dissanayake has indicated plans to adjust IMF targets, aiming to reduce income tax rates and allocate more resources to social welfare programmes. However, investors worry that any change to the IMF agreement may slow future disbursements, potentially hindering Sri Lanka’s ability to meet a key primary surplus target of 2.3% of GDP by 2025.
(with inputs from Reuters)
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