Sri Lankans went to the polls on Saturday to elect a new president, with the country’s economic future hanging in the balance following its worst financial crisis in decades.
The election is shaping up to be a tight race between incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe, main opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, and Marxist-leaning challenger Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who led in a recent opinion poll.
Voting closed at 4 p.m. local time, with results expected to be announced by the Election Commission on Sunday. Over 17 million of Sri Lanka’s 22 million people were eligible to vote, choosing from 38 candidates across more than 13,000 polling stations.
The country’s election system allows voters to cast three preferential votes. If no candidate secures 50% in the first count, a second round will determine the winner between the top two candidates using preferential votes.
This election marks Sri Lanka’s first since its economy collapsed in 2022 due to a severe foreign exchange shortage, leading to widespread protests that forced then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign.
The new president will face the critical task of maintaining Sri Lanka’s fragile economic recovery, supported by a $2.9 billion International Monetary Fund bailout program. Despite signs of improvement, including cooled inflation and projected economic growth for 2024, millions of Sri Lankans remain in poverty and debt.
Anura Kumara Dissanayake, after casting his vote, declared, “This is an election that will change the history of Sri Lanka. People are voting enthusiastically.”
President Wickremesinghe, seeking re-election, stated, “We have stabilized the government and the democratic system. I’m happy I’ve been able to make a major contribution to that.”
The winning candidate will need to ensure Sri Lanka adheres to the IMF program until 2027, reassure markets, attract investors, and help a quarter of the population climb out of poverty.
As the nation awaits the results, the election represents a crucial moment in Sri Lanka’s efforts to stabilize its economy and chart a course for future prosperity.
