Dissanayake at a rally November 11 - image via X
Various Sources
Sri Lanka's leftist coalition, led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, has secured a landslide victory in the snap parliamentary elections today, November 15. The National People's Power (NPP) coalition won 159 out of 225 seats, giving them a comfortable two-thirds majority. This stunning victory grants him and the coalition a sweeping mandate for change and allows them to push for significant constitutional amendments.
The coalition won a monumental 61.5 percent of the vote while opposition leader Sajith Premadasa's party was well behind with 17.6 percent. This is all the more remarkable given that prior to his unexpected victory in September, the NPP had virtually no parliamentary representation which is what led the president to call the election in the first place.
Dissanayake, a Marxist, campaigned on promises to fight poverty and combat corruption, resonating with many Sri Lankans who have faced economic hardships in no small part due to austerity measures forced by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Dissanayake has pledged to renegotiate the country's deal with the IMF. This election marks a significant shift in Sri Lanka's political landscape, with the NPP gaining widespread support, even in regions traditionally dominated by other parties and in Tamil majority regions.
Further reading: The Left Wins Presidential Election in Sri Lanka
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