More than 14 million persons – 14,088,500 to be exact – are expected to go to the polls on Thursday to elect members to the next Parliament.
Out of 7,620 candidates vying for seats in the 225-member Legislature, 196 will be directly elected by the people.
Twenty-nine members will be nominated for the National List of MPs, based on the percentage of votes polled by each party.
The main parties in the running are the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA); the United National Front (UNF), led by the United National Party (UNP); the Democratic National Alliance (DNA), under the leadership of detained General (retd.) Sarath Fonseka, and the Illankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK), in the North and East.
Colombo district has the highest concentration of registered voters, 1,521,854, followed by Gampaha with 1,474,464 voters and Kurunegala with 1,183,649. Colombo district will also return the largest number of Members of Parliament (19), followed by Gampaha (18), and Kurunegala (15).
The Elections Secretariat has made special arrangements for displaced persons to vote from their places of residence.
At the last General Elections, in April 2004, the UPFA won 4,223,970 votes, or 45.60 per cent, and 105 seats in Parliament – with 92 members elected and 13 from the National List.
The UNF gained 3,504,200 votes, or 37.83 per cent, and secured 82 seats – 71 elected and 11 from the National List.
ITAK gained 633,654 votes, or 6.84 per cent, and won 22 seats – 20 elected and two from the National List.
Contesting for the first time, the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) emerged the surprise winner in 2004, securing 552,724 votes and winning nine seats in Parliament, including two nominated MPs. The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) gained 186,876 votes and secured five seats, including one on the National List. The Up-Country People’s Front (UPF) and the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) gained one seat each in the House.
High-profile figures contesting in Thursday’s elections are Namal Rajapaksa, son of President Mahinda Rajapaksa; the President’s brother Basil Rajapaksa; cricketer Sanath Jayasuriya, actress Geetha Kumarasinghe; diplomat and former beauty queen Rosie Senanayake, and Olympic athlete, sprinter Susanthika Jayasinghe.
Meanwhile, the Elections Commissioner has issued the media a guideline relating to the general elections.
One recommendation is that the media maintain a silence on the elections on the eve of the polls. This break in election coverage is to give the voter space to think about his or her vote.
The Elections Commissioner has requested the electronic and print media to refrain from publishing and broadcasting discussions, debates, advertisements relating to the election in the 48 hours preceding the date of the poll and on the day of the polls.
The new Parliament meets on April 22. |
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