Sri Lanka’s presidential election has entered a second round of counting after none of the candidates secured a majority. Incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe has been eliminated from the race.
The Election Commission announced on Sunday that the run-off will be held between two opposition leaders — Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the leader of the leftist National People’s Power party, and Sajith Premadasa, who heads the SJB, meaning “United People’s Power.”
In Sri Lanka’s election system, voters select three candidates in the order of their preference. In the run-off, the second and third preferential votes for the top two candidates will be added to their counts.
The key issue in the election has been the austerity measures introduced by the incumbent president to rebuild the economy that defaulted in 2022.
Wickremesinghe managed to secure a bailout from the International Monetary Fund, and raised taxes and electricity prices. But his moves drew a backlash from the public.
The two opposition candidates are calling for a review of the economic reforms. The election results could affect the South Asian nation’s debt restructuring plan led by Japan and other countries.