Sri Lankan voters to chose from 38 candidates in consequential presidential election

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SRI LANKA — Following a major economic crisis in Sri Lanka marked by protests that culminated in the overthrow of the government in 2022, voters in the island nation go to the polls Saturday to choose among 38 candidates for president.

Located to the south of India, many voters in the Buddhist majority country of 22 million people — approximately the same size as West Virginia — feel disgruntled with the country’s political culture as the nation climbs slowly out of its economic crisis. 

Reuters reports that after the 2022 collapse due to a severe shortage of dollars, the economy is one of the biggest issues, with inflation reaching as high as 70%. It added that inflation has since cooled and growth in GDP is forecast “for the first time in three years.”

“Across the island,” there was a “lot of confusion” and people are “uncertain” who to vote for. 

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A supporter of presidential candidate Samagi Jana Balawegaya, or United People’s Power, and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa holds a banner during the final campaign rally ahead of the presidential election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sept. 18, 2024.  (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

“Entire segments don’t even want to vote,” Vinod Moonesinghe, a voter, told Fox News Digital. 

He predicted “turnout could be lower” than in previous years due to disillusionment with many factors — dynasty politics, the candidates being surrounded by corrupt figures themselves and a general distrust toward the political class after years of corruption and empty promises. 

The top candidates in the field of 38 include incumbent president Ranil Wickremesinghe of the UNP; a right-leaning party opposition leader Sajith Premadasa of the newly created SJB party; Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the socialist, Marxist-leaning NPP; and nationalist Namal Rajapaksa of the SLPP.

The current government, headed by Wickremasinghe has been in power since 2022 and negotiated with creditors and secured an extended fund facility (EFF) program with the country’s major debtor, the International Monetary Fund (IMF). 

Supporters of Sri Lanka’s president, Ranil Wickremesinghe, play carrom inside an election campaign office ahead of the Sept. 21 presidential election in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Sept. 16, 2024.  (Reuters/Dinuka Liyanawatte )

Namal Rajapaksa, son of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa from the SLPP (Sri Lanka Podujana Perumana) told Fox News Digital, “We are the only party that is nationalistic in orientation this time.” 

When asked how he will overcome the challenges associated with his party’s history, he replied, “We will continue where my father’s term ended in 2015.” 

He dismissed criticism his party was pro-China as a global security concern. 

“Nobody will use Sri Lanka’s land air or sea to launch an attack on another country,” Rajapaksa said, predicting U.S.-Sri Lankan trade will boom if he wins.

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Rohan Gunaratna, professor of security studies at Nanyang Technology University in Singapore, said ties with the U.S. would remain strong regardless of the outcome. 

“The U.S.- Sri Lanka [partnership] will not be affected by whatever candidate or party that will come to power. Sri Lanka’s foreign policy is multidirectional and will work with the East and the West to build Sri Lanka.”

Presidential candidate Dilith Jayaweera, media mogul and businessman head of the newly formed Mawbima Janatha Party (MJP) told Fox News Digital “Sri Lanka’s landscape [has] completely changed”. He said that “traditional politicians” lack “management skills.” 

He believes voters want a new approach to politics, including new candidates. He noted the popular chant of protesters to “reject all 225,” the number of seats in parliament, hinting that people wanted fresh new political figures. 

Leader and the presidential candidate of the National People’s Power, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, speaks to supporters during the final public rally ahead of the election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2024.  (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)

Another voter, Usama Ibrahim, told Fox News Digital, “We stood in [lines] for hours during our worst economic crisis in 2022 and, yes, Ranil Wickremasinghe has got us out of it, but he restructured the debts to pay off later. But will we get back to square one if the winner of this election does not have a solid long-term plan”.

The communist JVP party, which is part of the NPP coalition, seems to have garnered support, according to recent opinion polls. Nihal Fernando, a taxi driver, told Fox News Digital “the other traditional politicians have a culture of jumping sides and, as we say, playing ‘musical chairs’ or leapfrogging. So, we now view many of the mainstream parties as being different sides to the same coin. He complained that since independence in 1948, the same political families have been in power and, after three generations, “change is welcome.” 

“Could things get any worse for the working class like myself?” he asked. 

Supporters of president and independent presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe wave national flags during a public rally in Minuwangoda, Sri Lanka, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024.  (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh)

Senaka Seneviratne, a Sri Lankan who has lived in the U.S. for 30 years, told Fox News Digital many in the diaspora want to see Sri Lanka prosper because they are “concerned about their family members back home.” He noted the general uncertainty about the election among diaspora members is not dissimilar to those in Sri Lanka, noting that some “may return home to vote.”  

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Political analyst Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, executive director of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, told Fox News Digital, “Many are angry and frustrated. This anger and desperation is translating into voting for the JVP, who are the new kids on the block in terms of having never captured wholescale political power.”  

He noted that the JVP has not gained traction among minorities as much as Premadasa and Wickremasinghe have. 

He noted that “Wickremasinghe restored a certain amount of political stability” during his two years in office. He said that the presidential election might go to a ‘second round’ if there is no majority.

Reutes contributed to this report.

Avi Kumar is a freelance journalist who reports on Asia and the Middle East.