Sri Lanka Elects Marxist Anura Kumara Dissanayake as 9th Executive President Amid Historic Election

Sep 22, 2024, 01:58 PM

Sri Lanka held its presidential election on September 21, 2024, marking the first major electoral exercise since the country's severe economic meltdown in 2022. The election saw a voter turnout of around 75%, with a peaceful voting process reported across the nation. Anura Kumara Dissanayake, leader of the National People's Power (NPP) and a Marxist politician, emerged as the frontrunner, taking a significant lead in the postal ballots. Despite the peaceful voting, the government imposed an overnight curfew to ensure public safety. The election went into a historic second round of counting as no candidate secured the required 50% of votes in the first round. Ultimately, Dissanayake won the election, becoming Sri Lanka's ninth executive president. His victory is notable as he is the first president not linked to the SLFP or UNP in over 70 years. Dissanayake has pledged to fight corruption and renegotiate the country's $2.9 billion IMF bailout agreement. Following his win, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena resigned. The election results and Dissanayake's victory are seen as a significant shift in Sri Lankan politics, moving from elite to working-class leadership. Ranil Wickremesinghe, the outgoing president, cast his vote among the 38 candidates who participated in the election. The initial voter turnout was 27 per cent.