Sri Lanka elections result highlights: Anura Kumara Dissanayake elected President

Sri Lanka’s Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa, who lost to leftist leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake in Saturday’s (September 21, 2024) presidential election, garnered the highest share of the Tamil minority’s vote, data published by the Election Commission of Sri Lanka showed.

Mr. Premadasa cumulatively secured over 40% of the votes across Tamil-majority areas in the island’s north, east, and central hill country. Significantly, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya leader obtained more votes than P. Ariyanethiran, a “common Tamil candidate” fielded by some political actors and civil society groups.

Incumbent president Ranil Wickremesinghe was eliminated in the first round after he failed to become within the top two in the vote list.

After being defeated in the election, Wickremesinghe bid an emotional farewell to his 26-month tenure, marking the end of his presidency.

Addressing president-elect Dissanayake in a statement, the 75-year-old outgoing president said, “President Anura Dissanayake, I am handing over to your care the lovable child of Sri Lanka.” He said that over the last two years he has safely carried the Sri Lanka child on the vine bridge, and “I wish that under your care as the new president, the child is carried safely to the end of his destination”.

- PTI

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Sri Lanka’s election commission formally announced on Sunday JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake the winner of the presidential election, defeating incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe.

The commission said on its website that Dissanayaka, 55, won the presidency with 42.31 percent of the vote at Saturday’s election, pushing opposition leader Sajith Premadasa to second place and Wickremesinghe to a distant third. Dissanayaka is due to be sworn in on Monday.

- AFP

After the first round of counting, National People’s Power (NPP) candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake has received 5,634,915 votes (42.3%), followed by Sajith Premadasa who received 4,363,035 votes (32.76%). The second round of counting is underway

JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake was leading Sri Lanka’s presidential election after knocking out the incumbent liberal President Ranil Wickremesinghe from the race, as officials on Sunday began a second round of vote counting for the first time in the nation’s history.

Mr. Dissanayake, whose pro-working class and anti-political elite campaigning made him popular among youth, was leading with 39% of the votes counted, followed by opposition leader Sajith Premadasa with 34%, according to tallies released by the Election Commission.

Sri Lanka’s presidential election has gone into a second round of vote counting on Sunday for the first time in history as the incumbent liberal President Ranil Wickremesinghe has been eliminated.

JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake leads early official results in Sri Lanka’s presidential election, according to tallies released on Sunday by the Election Commission.

The election, contested by 38 candidates, was largely a three-way race between Dissanayake, Wickremesinghe and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa. - AP

The Election Commission of Sri Lanka on Sunday ordered a second preference count after no candidate secured over 50% of the votes needed to win the presidential election.

Election Commission Chairman R. M. A. L Rathnayake said that Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Sajith Premadasa have secured maximum votes in the 2024 presidential election.

However, he said that as neither has secured more than 50% vote, the second preference vote will be counted and added to these two candidates. - PTI

Incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe - who took office at the peak of the 2022 economic collapse and imposed tough austerity policies per the terms of an IMF bailout - was trailing in a distant third.

Mr. Wickremesinghe has yet to concede, and an official result was not expected until later Sunday, but foreign minister Ali Sabry said the early count made it clear that Anura Kumara Dissanayaka had won.

“Though I heavily campaigned for President Ranil Wickremesinghe, the people of Sri Lanka have made their decision, and I fully respect their mandate for Anura Kumara Dissanayaka,” Mr. Sabry said on social media. - AFP

Presidential candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayaka and his People’s Liberation Front vows to not scrap the country’s unpopular $2.9 billion IMF bailout agreement, but instead renegotiate it, says politburo member Bimal Ratnayake

-AFP

According to the Election Commission of Sri Lanka, Mr. Dissanayake grabbed a commanding lead. Out of the total votes counted as of 11:45 p.m. IST, he has garnered 40.13% with 2,362,751 votes. Meanwhile, his rival Sajith Premadasa stands at 33.3% with 1,960,647 votes. 

Ranil Wickremesinghe stands at 17.4% with 1,024,517. 

National People’s Power sources claim to schedule a visit to the Presidential Secretariat on Sunday to discuss the formalities of the transition.

Analysts say, “Dissanayake garnered was of unbelievable proportions despite pre-poll expectations of his victory which were considered foregone,”. NPP had only garnered 3% of the vote in the previous election. 

-PTI

Ranil Wickremesinghe is yet to concede defeat but his Foreign Minister Ali Sabry on congratulates Mr. Dissanayake for his win.