Sri Lanka launches historic second vote count in presidential election

Sri Lankan authorities have initiated a historic second round of counting after no candidate secured the majority needed to win the presidential race.

Marxist-leaning Anura Kumara Dissanayake and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa emerged as the top contenders, with Dissanayake leading at 42% of the vote compared to Premadasa's 33%, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

However, neither achieved the required 50% threshold.

Under Sri Lanka's preferential voting system, officials will now tally the second-choice votes marked on the ballots before declaring a winner. All other candidates, including incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who received just 17%, have been eliminated from the race.

Wickremesinghe has yet to concede defeat, although Foreign Minister Ali Sabry acknowledged Dissanayake's apparent victory, stating, "The people of Sri Lanka have made their decision, and I fully respect their mandate for Anura Kumara Dissanayake."

Vijitha Herath, a delegate from Dissanayake's party, expressed confidence in their success but urged supporters to remain patient as the count continues. "The Election Commission must complete the process of counting preference votes, which is delaying the final result," he noted in a video message.

Economic challenges have dominated the eight-week campaign, with public frustration growing over the hardships stemming from the 2022 economic crisis. Dissanayake has pledged to uphold the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreement tied to austerity measures, while also indicating a desire to renegotiate its terms.