Voting for Sri Lanka Presidential polls ends, first result before midnight

Colombo: Following the conclusion of voting in the presidential election on Saturday, Sri Lanka's Election Commission declared that the first postal vote result would probably be released before midnight.

"The 2024 Presidential Election has been the most peaceful election day in history. The ballot boxes are being transported to counting centres now. The counting will begin at 7 pm and the first results, reflecting the postal votes, will be released before midnight," Lankan media quoted Election Commissioner General Saman Sri Ratnayake as saying after the conclusion of voting.

The much-anticipated election, the first after the island nation's worst-ever economic crisis, saw a total of 39 candidates in the fray with incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa of Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) party and Marxist leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna party being considered the front-runners to the election, the results of which will be keenly watched in the region.

Out of the total population of around 22 million, 17,140,350 Sri Lankans were eligible to exercise their franchise at this election. This included 1.2 million new voters.

Polling began at 7 A.M. at 3,421 polling centres across the country and ended at 4 PM. The counting of votes will begin soon at the 1,274 counting centres and 439 postal vote-counting centres.

According to Ratnayake, the first election result is expected around 11 pm Saturday and full results are expected to be announced on Sunday.

Election observers from various countries besides the European Union have also been invited by the Lankan Election Commission to monitor the entire exercise.

In the 2019 election, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the younger brother of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, was elected as the President after recording a landslide victory.

However, a severe economic crisis after the Covid pandemic - along with several shortsighted decisions - led to a major economic crisis in the country with severe shortages of basic essentials like food, fuel, medicine and cooking gas.

Widespread protests and violence forced Gotabaya to flee the country in July 2022 with several other members in the Rajapaksas family also going into hiding.

As he left, Gotabaya invited Wickremesinghe to take over the country with the support of a nearly 60 per cent SLPP majority in the parliament.

Having gradually controlled the economic crisis, Wickremesinghe asked SLPP to support him in the upcoming Presidential Election but the Rajapaksas accused the President of dividing their party and denied any support.

Later, Namal Rajapaksa, the eldest son of former President and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, also entered Sri Lanka's Presidential election race.

With inputs from IANS