Marxist-leaning Dissanayake leads early official vote count in Sri Lanka’s presidential election

By The Associated Press

Leader and the presidential candidate of National People's Power Anura Kumara Dissanayake arrives at a polling station to cast his vote in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Eranga Jayawardena]

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Marxist-leaning lawmaker Anura Kumara Dissanayake leads early official results in Sri Lanka’s presidential election, according to tallies released on Sunday by the Election Commission, but he is still short of the 50% needed for victory.

The election held Saturday is crucial as the country seeks to recover from the worst economic crisis in its history and the resulting political upheaval.

The election, contested by 38 candidates, was largely a three-way race among Dissanayake, incumbent liberal President Ranil Wickremesinghe and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa.

Dissanayake was leading with 47% of total votes counted, followed by Premadasa with nearly 28% and Wickremesinghe with 15%.

The election was a virtual referendum on Wickremesinghe’s leadership of a fragile recovery, including restructuring Sri Lanka’s debt under an International Monetary Fund bailout program after it defaulted in 2022.

No major incidents were reported during the vote but authorities declared a countrywide curfew until midday Sunday as a precaution, police said.

There were 17 million eligible voters and final results are expected Sunday evening.

The government announced Thursday that it passed the final hurdle in debt restructuring by reaching an agreement in principle with private bond holders.

At the time of its default, Sri Lanka’s local and foreign debt totaled $83 billion. The government says it has now restructured more than $17 billion.

Despite a significant improvement in key economic figures, Sri Lankans are struggling with high taxes and living costs.

Both Premadasa and Dissanayake say they will renegotiate the IMF deal to make austerity measures more bearable. Wickremesinghe has warned that any move to alter the basics of the agreement could delay the release of a fourth tranche of nearly $3 billion that is crucial to maintaining stability.