Sri Lanka votes today to pick President after economic crisis; Wickremesinghe faces tough challenge in election triangle

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka began voting for its next president on Saturday, effectively turning the election into a referendum on the International Monetary Fund's unpopular austerity plan implemented following the country’s severe financial crisis.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe faces a challenging fight for a new mandate to maintain the belt-tightening measures that have stabilized the economy and alleviated months of shortages in food, fuel, and medicine.

“We must continue with reforms to end bankruptcy,” Wickremesinghe, 75, said at his final rally in Colombo this week, adding, “Decide if you want to go back to the period of terror or progress,” AFP reported.

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Sri Lanka's crisis has proven an opportunity for the 55-year-old Dissanayaka, who has seen a surge of support based on his pledge to change the island's “corrupt” political culture.

Wickremesinghe's tax increases and other measures, part of a $2.9 billion IMF bailout, have left millions struggling to make ends meet.

More than 17 million people are eligible to vote in the election, with more than 63,000 police deployed to protect polling booths and counting centres.

Economic issues dominated the eight-week campaign, fueled by widespread public frustration over the hardships faced since the crisis peaked two years ago. Official data indicated that Sri Lanka's poverty rate doubled to 25 per cent between 2021 and 2022, adding over 2.5 million people to those living on less than $3.65 a day.

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Although a record 38 candidates are on the ballot, the election has been a tight race between three leading candidates: incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe, opposition leader Sajith Premadasa, and Anura Kumara Dissanayake, a leftist politician backed by protesters who led the political uprisings in 2022.

At stake is the fate of the $3 billion IMF lending program, with both Premadasa and Dissanayake vowing to renegotiate the loan conditions to ease the burden on the poor. Wickremesinghe helped to broker the IMF bailout and stabilize the economy, although the austerity measures and higher taxes that followed have made him deeply unpopular with voters.

Who are all in the frey?

Wickremesinghe is expected to face tough competition from two strong challengers, including Anura Kumara Dissanayaka, the leader of a previously marginal Marxist party with a controversial history of violence.

Wickremesinghe, 75, has been campaigning on his record of reducing inflation from 70% two years ago to low single digits today, negotiating debt restructuring with creditors like China and private bondholders, and emphasizing the need for policy stability to support economic recovery.

The main opposition leader, Sajith Premadasa, 57, heads a political party that broke away from Wickremesinghe’s in 2020. A former housing and health minister, he garners support primarily from poorer Sri Lankans and the Tamil minority. He has pledged to boost exports to stimulate growth and combat corruption.

Premadasa, the son of a former president assassinated in 1993 during the country's decades-long civil war, is also expected to make a strong showing.

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Dissanayake, 55, leads the National People’s Power, a coalition of leftist parties backed by the protesters who ousted former leader Gotabaya Rajapaksa two years ago. Some opinion polls show him leading his rivals, and his recent rallies have attracted large crowds, as he promises to address corruption.

Dissanayake has also committed to reopening negotiations with the IMF, and some members of his party oppose the debt restructuring agreement made with the IMF.

Polls will close at 4:00 PM (10:30 GMT), with counting scheduled to begin on Saturday evening. While results are anticipated on Sunday, an official announcement may be delayed if the contest is close. Schools were closed on Friday to serve as polling stations, staffed by more than 200,000 public servants assigned to facilitate the election.

(With inputs from agencies)