Sri Lanka set for upcoming parliamentary election

Election officials and a police officer carry a ballot box and other voting materials a day before Sri Lanka’s parliamentary election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Nov. 13, 2024. Sri Lanka is set to hold its parliamentary election on Nov. 14, with all necessary preparations in place to ensure a fair and transparent process, Election Commission Chairman R.M.A.L. Ratnayake announced on Tuesday. Voting will take place at over 13,000 polling stations across the country, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time on Thursday. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)
COLOMBO, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) — Sri Lanka is set to hold its parliamentary election on Nov. 14, with all necessary preparations in place to ensure a fair and transparent process, Election Commission Chairman R.M.A.L. Ratnayake announced on Tuesday.
Voting will take place at over 13,000 polling stations across the country, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time on Thursday.
Over 8,000 candidates are contesting the election, with over 17 million eligible voters. The Gampaha district in the Western Province holds the largest share of voters, with around 1.9 million registered.
To maintain security, around 90,000 police and security personnel have been deployed, according to police spokesman Nihal Thalduwa.
Due to the election, the Ministry of Education announced that all schools nationwide would be closed on Wednesday and Thursday.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake dissolved parliament on Sept. 24 through an extraordinary gazette notice, shortly after being elected president.
The election is seen as crucial for both Dissanayake’s National People’s Power (NPP) and his political rivals. Dissanayake has pledged a transformative agenda for Sri Lanka and requires a solid parliamentary majority to advance his goals.
The Sri Lankan parliament consists of 225 seats, with 113 needed to form a majority government. ■

Election officials and a police officer carry a ballot box and other voting materials a day before Sri Lanka’s parliamentary election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Nov. 13, 2024.
Sri Lanka is set to hold its parliamentary election on Nov. 14, with all necessary preparations in place to ensure a fair and transparent process, Election Commission Chairman R.M.A.L. Ratnayake announced on Tuesday.
Voting will take place at over 13,000 polling stations across the country, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time on Thursday. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)

Election officials carry a ballot box and other voting materials a day before Sri Lanka’s parliamentary election in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Nov. 13, 2024.
Sri Lanka is set to hold its parliamentary election on Nov. 14, with all necessary preparations in place to ensure a fair and transparent process, Election Commission Chairman R.M.A.L. Ratnayake announced on Tuesday.
Voting will take place at over 13,000 polling stations across the country, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. local time on Thursday. (Photo by Ajith Perera/Xinhua)