President Ranil Wickremesinghe addresses his supporters after submitting his nomination papers for the upcoming presidential election, scheduled for September 21, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on August 15, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

COLOMBO

As many as 39 presidential aspirants will contest a crucial poll in Sri Lanka on September 21, the Election Commission said on Thursday (August 15, 2024), after closing nominations.

Incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who rose to the top office through a parliamentary vote during the island nation’s 2022 crisis, is seeking a mandate to take forward his government’s economic reform agenda.

Mr. Wickremesinghe, 75, is contesting as an independent candidate on a “stability” plank, while his main challengers Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, who broke away from Mr. Wickremesinghe’s United National Party following political differences, and Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who leads the centre-left National People’s Power alliance, are promising change.

More recently, Namal Rajapaksa, son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, entered the race, becoming the first prominent member from the family to face the electorate after a people’s movement dislodged them from power in 2022, when the island experienced its worst financial meltdown in decades. Lawyer Nuwan Bopage, a prominent activist representing a section of the 2022 uprising, is also contesting for the recently formed ‘People’s Struggle Alliance’.

Addressing supporters after filing his nomination President Wickremesinghe said, “Had I not stepped up [in 2022] Sri Lanka would face the crisis now plaguing Bangladesh… I ask for your mandate to continue this work.”

Many Sri Lankans credit Mr. Wickremesinghe for leading the country at a challenging time and setting its economy on a path of recovery. However, his government’s austerity measures, introduced as part of an Internal Monetary Fund-backed programme, have hit most citizens hard. His opponents Mr. Premadasa and Mr. Dissanayake have promised to renegotiate the IMF’s package and alleviate the economic suffering ofSri Lankans.

Nearly 17 million eligible voters will have a say on September 21, when the country goes to the polls for the first time after former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was unseated by citizens in 2022.