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Poll card stickers and polls day death
Following the assassination of President R. Premadasa on May 1, 1993, Prime Minister D. B. Wijetunga moved over to the President's House and Ranil Wickremesinghe took his place as Prime Minister.

Several opposition parties grouped themselves to form the People's Alliance (PA) to contest in the general election fixed for August 16, 1994. The constituent parties were the SLFP, LSSP, CP, Democratic United National Front-Lalith Group (formed after Minister Lalith Athulathmudali was assassinated on a political platform on April 23, 1993), Sri Lanka Mahajana Party-Y.P.de Silva Group, and Desha Vimukthi Peramuna. The UNP, MEP and the Sri Lanka Progressive Front (with Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna) were the other main parties in the fray.

The number of registered voters topped the ten million mark (10,945,065). Some 9,579 polling stations were set up in the 22 electoral districts covering the 25 administrative districts.Kilinochchi administrative district formed part of the Jaffna electoral district while Mannar & Mullaitivu moved over to the Vanni electoral district.

The total number of candidates was 1,449 from 13 parties.There were 26 independent groups. The total polled was 8,344,101 (76.2%) with the rate of poll varying from 2.32% in the Jaffna electoral district to 87.25% in Ratnapura. It was not possible to conduct the poll at 465 polling stations in the North and the poll was annulled by the Commissioner of Elections.

The People's Alliance led by Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (she was elected Chief Minister of the Western Province in May 1993) gained 105 seats while the ruling UNP got 94 in the elections to the tenth Parliament.

Ms. Kumaratunga was sworn in as Prime Minister on August 19, but she remained in that office only until November 12, 1994 when she won the Presidential election. Sirimavo Bandaranaike was then appointed Prime Minister - for the third time. She remained in office till August 10, 2000 when she resigned due to ill health. She was succeeded by Ratnasiri Wickremanayake.

Ranil Wickremesinghe became Leader of the Opposition, succeeding Gamini Dissanayake who held the post prior to contesting the 1994 Presidential Election as the UNP candidate. Mr. Dissanayake was killed by a suicide bomber on October 24 while attending a political rally in Colombo). K.B.Ratnayake (PA-National List) served as Speaker of the Tenth Parliament.

Eleventh Parliament
The number of registered voters had risen to 12,071,062 by August 2000 (2.42% increase) when the Tenth Parliament was dissolved. A record 5,048 candidates handed in nominations during the week, August 28 - September 4, 2000. Of them, 3,883 were from 29 recognized political parties and the others were from Independent groups. This was the highest number of candidates contesting a general election since Independence. A number of new parties also joined the fray.

To ensure that poll cards issued by the Elections Department were not tampered with, stickers bearing a code number were pasted on them. This was another 'first' introduced to minimise impersonation. The poll cards issued to voters in the Electoral District of Jaffna were different to those issued elsewhere. Further, each polling station was issued a rubber stamp bearing a distinctive official mark on each instead of the usual perforations.

Elections were held on October 10, 2000. Some 9,946 polling stations were set up. Another 76 were set up for the convenience of 26,832 disabled (displaced?) persons. Polling was not conducted in 45 polling stations in the district of Kilinochchi "owing to lack of security in the area", according to Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake. Polling at these stations, along with 49 out of 53 in the polling division of Mullaitivu (Vanni District) was declared null and void. Polling was also declared null and void in 20 polling stations. Of these 14 were in the electoral district of Kandy.

Ms Bandaranaike died on the day of the election on her way back to Colombo after voting in Attanagalla, the seat traditionally held by the Bandaranaikes. Having resigned as Prime Minister a few months earlier, she did not contest in 2000. It was the end of an era when, having become the first woman Prime Minister in the world (in July 1960), she held that position on three occasions. She was Leader of the Opposition in the Sixth Parliament (1965-1970). Following the findings of a Presidential Commission that inquired into her 1970-77 regime's alleged abuse and misuse of power, she was stripped of her civic rights for seven years by a special motion adopted in Parliament on 16 October 1980.

A total poll of 9,128,823 (75.62%) was recorded. The voting ratios varied from 21.32% in the Jaffna district to 83.01% in Moneragala. With the support of the NUA, EPDP, and an Independent group member, the People's Alliance formed the government with a strength of 116 MPs. Ratnasiri Wickremanayake (PA-Horana) was appointed Prime Minister. A 42-member Cabinet was sworn in on October 19.

Ranil Wickremesinghe became Leader of the Opposition. At the inaugural meeting of the Eleventh Parliament on October 18, Anura Bandaranaike, who had crossed over to the UNP from the SLFP prior to the elections, was unanimously elected Speaker.

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