Sri Lanka has been put under an overnight curfew after the presidential poll was completed across the country. The country went through an unprecedented economic crisis, which saw mass protests and the forced removal of the previous President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
It took the police barely two hours to declare a curfew of eight hours to usher in what the Independent Election Commission said was one of the most peaceful general elections in the country’s history. Provisional overall voter turnout stood at about 70 percent an hour before the polling stations were scheduled to close at 4 PM local time.
This election is seen as a vote against the incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe, Rajapaksa’s successor, who brought an IMF-recommended austerity budget. Many of these policies, such as tax increases, have been questioned, thus leaving so many citizens broke.
Following the vote, Wickremesinghe said, “I have pulled this country out of bankruptcy,” and asked the people to choose between chaos and prosperity.
The economic crisis has reinforced the popularity of Anura Kumara Dissanayake, leader of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), whose party adopted populist policies to reform the political system. Sajith Premadasa from the opposition is also likely to garner good results.
The economic questions were on top of the agenda for the eight weeks leading to the campaign, instigated by people’s frustration from the struggles experienced after the worst of it two years ago. Published data suggest that the Poverty Head Count Ratio in Sri Lanka stood at 25 % from 2021 – 2022.
While people have been waiting for these results, thousands of police have been dispatched to polling stations. The government has banned the sale of alcohol and any festivities for a week after the announcement of the results. Polls have closed, and vote counting should start shortly. More results could be expected by Sunday.
