Voting Continues in Sri Lanka in First Polls Since Protests Ousted Leaders in Cash-Strapped Country

Citizens are voting in cash-strapped Sri Lanka to elect its next president on Saturday.

After implementing an unpopular International Monetary Fund austerity plan to resolve the island nation’s unprecedented financial crisis, President Ranil Wickremesinghe is trying hard for a fresh mandate. His two years in office restored calm to the streets after civil unrest in 2022 that saw thousands storm the compound of his predecessor, who escaped out of the country.

The challengers to Wickremesinghe include Anura Kumara Dissanayaka, the leader of a Marxist party.

Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, 57, the son of a former president assassinated in 1993 is also in the fray.

A total of 39 people are contesting for the post of the president. They include a 79-year-old candidate who remains on the ballot despite dying of a heart attack in August.

More than 17 million people are eligible to vote in the Sri Lanka election. More than 63,000 police are deployed to guard polling booths and counting centres.