# Elections in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka elects on the national level a head of state – the president – and a legislature. Sri Lanka has a multi-party system, with two dominant political parties. All elections are administered by the Election Commission of Sri Lanka.

## President

The president is directly elected for a five-year term, through a version of Instant-runoff voting in which electors rank up to three candidates, and limited to only two rounds in total. If no candidate wins a majority in the first round of voting, second and third preferences from ballots whose first preference candidate has been eliminated are used to determine the winner. However, there was never an instance where a "run-off" count was needed since the introduction of directly elected president in the 1980s until the 2024 election. No candidate reached 50% in the first count in that election, so the second count was performed.

## Parliament

The Parliament has 225 members, elected for a five-year term, 196 members elected in multi-seat constituencies through proportional representation system where each party is allocated a number of seats from the quota for each district according to the proportion of the total vote that party obtains in the district. The other 29 which is called the national list are appointed by each party secretary according to the island wide proportional vote the party obtains.

## Local Government

The Local government bodies in Sri Lanka;
* Municipal Councils
* Urban Councils
* Pradeshiya Sabha
are elected through the mixed electoral system.

## Latest elections
### 2024 presidential election

| Candidate | Candidate | Party | First preference | First preference | Total votes | Total votes |
| Candidate | Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| | Anura Kumara Dissanayake | National People's Power | 5,634,915 | 42.31 | 5,740,179 | 55.89 |
| | Sajith Premadasa | Samagi Jana Balawegaya | 4,363,035 | 32.76 | 4,530,902 | 44.11 |
| | Ranil Wickremesinghe | Independent | 2,299,767 | 17.27 | | |
| | Namal Rajapaksa | Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna | 342,781 | 2.57 | | |
| | P. Ariyanethiran | Independent | 226,343 | 1.70 | | |
| | Dilith Jayaweera | Communist Party of Sri Lanka | 122,396 | 0.92 | | |
| | K. K. Piyadasa | Independent | 47,543 | 0.36 | | |
| | D. M. Bandaranayake | Independent | 30,660 | 0.23 | | |
| | Sarath Fonseka | Independent | 22,407 | 0.17 | | |
| | Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe | National Democratic Front | 21,306 | 0.16 | | |
| | Anuruddha Polgampola | Independent | 15,411 | 0.12 | | |
| | Sarath Keerthirathne | Independent | 15,187 | 0.11 | | |
| | K. R. Krishan | Arunalu People's Front | 13,595 | 0.10 | | |
| | Suranjeewa Anoj de Silva | Democratic United National Front | 12,898 | 0.10 | | |
| | Priyantha Wickremesinghe | Nava Sama Samaja Party | 12,760 | 0.10 | | |
| | Namal Rajapaksha | Samabima Party | 12,700 | 0.10 | | |
| | Akmeemana Dayarathana Thero | Independent | 11,536 | 0.09 | | |
| | Nuwan Bopege | Socialist People's Forum | 11,191 | 0.08 | | |
| | Ajantha de Zoyza | Ruhunu People's Party | 10,548 | 0.08 | | |
| | Victor Anthony Perera | Independent | 10,374 | 0.08 | | |
| | Siripala Amarasinghe | Independent | 9,035 | 0.07 | | |
| | Siritunga Jayasuriya | United Socialist Party | 8,954 | 0.07 | | |
| | Battaramulle Seelarathana Thero | People's Welfare Front | 6,839 | 0.05 | | |
| | Abubakar Mohamed Infaz | Democratic Unity Alliance | 6,531 | 0.05 | | |
| | Pemasiri Manage | Independent | 5,822 | 0.04 | | |
| | Mahinda Dewage | Socialist Party of Sri Lanka | 5,338 | 0.04 | | |
| | Keerthi Wickremeratne | Our People's Power Party | 4,676 | 0.04 | | |
| | Pani Wijesiriwardena | Socialist Equality Party | 4,410 | 0.03 | | |
| | Oshala Herath | New Independent Front | 4,253 | 0.03 | | |
| | Roshan Ranasinghe | Independent | 4,205 | 0.03 | | |
| | P. W. S. K. Bandaranayake | National Development Front | 4,070 | 0.03 | | |
| | Ananda Kularatne | Independent | 4,013 | 0.03 | | |
| | Lalith de Silva | United National Freedom Front | 3,004 | 0.02 | | |
| | Sidney Jayarathna | Independent | 2,799 | 0.02 | | |
| | Janaka Ratnayake | United Lanka People's Party | 2,405 | 0.02 | | |
| | M. Thilakarajah | Independent | 2,138 | 0.02 | | |
| | Sarath Manamendra | New Sinhala Heritage | 1,911 | 0.01 | | |
| | A. S. P. Liyanage | Sri Lanka Labour Party | 1,860 | 0.01 | | |
| Total | Total | Total | 13,319,616 | 100.00 | 10,271,081 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 13,319,616 | 97.80 | 10,271,081 | 75.41 |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 300,300 | 2.20 | 3,348,835 | 24.59 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 13,619,916 | 100.00 | 13,619,916 | 100.00 |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 17,140,354 | 79.46 | 17,140,354 | 79.46 |
| Source: Election Commission of Sri Lanka |||||||

### 2024 parliamentary election

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake's National People's Power alliance won 159 of the 225 seats, securing a two-thirds majority in the Parliament. This surge in the NPP's seat count from three in the previous Parliament marks a shift in Sri Lankan politics. Reports suggest that Dissanayake's campaign focused on anti-corruption, social welfare, and economic revival amidst the country's economic crisis resonated with voters.
In the north and east, a decrease in support amongst Tamil and Muslim voters for traditional ethnic parties were given to be the reason for the NPP's success.
The main opposition alliance, Sajith Premadasa's Samagi Jana Balawegaya, won 40 seats, a decrease from the previous election. Former President Ranil Wickremesinghe's New Democratic Front secured 5 seats, while former President Mahinda Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna collapsed from 145 seats in the previous election, winning 3 seats.

### National

Seats :
| Party | Party | Votes | % | District | National | Total | ± |
| | National People's Power | 6,863,186 | 61.56 | 141 | 18 | 159 | +156 |
| | Samagi Jana Balawegaya | 1,968,716 | 17.66 | 35 | 5 | 40 | −14 |
| | New Democratic Front | 500,835 | 4.49 | 3 | 2 | 5 | +5 |
| | Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna | 350,429 | 3.14 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −97 |
| | Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi | 257,813 | 2.31 | 7 | 1 | 8 | +8 |
| | Sarvajana Balaya | 178,006 | 1.60 | 0 | 1 | 1 | +1 |
| | Sri Lanka Muslim Congress | 87,038 | 0.78 | 2 | 1 | 3 | +2 |
| | United Democratic Voice | 83,488 | 0.75 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | United National Party | 66,234 | 0.59 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | Democratic Tamil National Alliance | 65,382 | 0.59 | 1 | 0 | 1 | New |
| | Democratic Left Front | 50,836 | 0.46 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic National Alliance | 45,419 | 0.41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Tamil National People's Front | 39,894 | 0.36 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal | 34,440 | 0.31 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 |
| | All Ceylon Makkal Congress | 33,911 | 0.30 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| | People's Struggle Alliance | 29,611 | 0.27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Eelam People's Democratic Party | 28,985 | 0.26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 |
| | Jaffna – Independent Group 17 | 30,637 | 0.27 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| | National Democratic Front | 25,444 | 0.23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | United National Alliance | 22,548 | 0.20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Sri Lanka Labour Party | 17,710 | 0.16 | 1 | 0 | 1 | +1 |
| | Devana Parapura | 16,950 | 0.15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Thamizh Makkal Koottani | 13,295 | 0.12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Jana Setha Peramuna | 12,743 | 0.11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | National Front for Good Governance | 8,447 | 0.08 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | United National Freedom Front | 7,796 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Arunalu Peoples Alliance | 7,666 | 0.07 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | New Independent Front | 7,182 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | National People's Party | 6,307 | 0.06 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Our Power of People's Party | 6,043 | 0.05 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 |
| | Tamil United Liberation Front | 5,061 | 0.05 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic United National Front | 4,480 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Samabima Party | 4,449 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Patriotic People's Power | 3,985 | 0.04 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Eros Democratic Front | 2,865 | 0.03 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Democratic Unity Alliance | 2,198 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Socialist Party of Sri Lanka | 2,087 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Jathika Sangwardhena Peramuna | 1,920 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | United Socialist Party | 1,838 | 0.02 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Socialist Equality Party | 864 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Freedom People's Front | 841 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | United Peace Alliance | 822 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Lanka Janatha Party | 759 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Eksath Lanka Podujana Pakshaya | 659 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Liberal Democratic Party | 635 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Nawa Lanka Nidahas Pakshaya | 601 | 0.01 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Nava Sama Samaja Party | 491 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Akhila Ilankai Tamil Mahasabha | 450 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | Democratic Party | 283 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Sri Lanka Mahajana Pakshaya | 269 | 0.00 | 0 | 0 | 0 | New |
| | Independents | 245,458 | 2.20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 11,148,006 | 100.00 | 196 | 29 | 225 | 0 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | 11,148,006 | 94.35 | | | | |
| Invalid/blank votes | Invalid/blank votes | 667,240 | 5.65 | | | | |
| Total votes | Total votes | 11,815,246 | 100.00 | | | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 17,140,354 | 68.93 | | | | |
| Source: Election Commission of Sri Lanka ||||||||

### District

* Districts won by NPP
* Districts won by ITAK
District results for the 2024 Sri Lankan parliamentary election :
| Province | Electoral District | NPP | NPP | NPP | SJB | SJB | SJB | ITAK | ITAK | ITAK | NDF | NDF | NDF | SLPP | SLPP | SLPP | Others | Others | Others | Total | Total | Total | Turnout |
| Province | Electoral District | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Votes | % | Seats | Total Polled | Registered Electors | Seats | Turnout |
| Western | Colombo | 788,636 | 68.63% | 14 | 208,249 | 18.12% | 4 | – | – | – | 51,020 | 4.44% | – | 34,880 | 3.04% | – | 66,340 | 5.47% | – | 1,211,738 | 1,765,351 | 18 | 68.64% |
| Western | Gampaha | 898,759 | 72.76% | 16 | 150,445 | 12.18% | 3 | – | – | – | 47,512 | 3.85% | – | 49,516 | 4.01% | – | 89,080 | 7.20% | – | 1,306,952 | 1,881,129 | 19 | 69.48% |
| Western | Kalutara | 452,398 | 66.09% | 8 | 128,932 | 18.84% | 2 | – | – | – | 34,257 | 5.00% | 1 | 27,072 | 3.96% | – | 41,833 | 6.11% | – | 721,461 | 1,024,244 | 11 | 70.44% |
| Central | Kandy | 500,596 | 64.60% | 9 | 145,939 | 18.83% | 2 | – | – | – | 50,889 | 6.57% | 1 | 15,762 | 2.03% | – | 61,729 | 7.97% | – | 61,012 | 1,191,399 | 12 | 70.16% |
| Central | Matale | 181,678 | 66.16% | 4 | 53,200 | 19.37% | 1 | – | – | – | 13,353 | 4.86% | – | 10,150 | 3.70% | – | 16,220 | 5.91% | – | 297,238 | 429,991 | 5 | 69.13% |
| Central | Nuwara Eliya | 161,167 | 41.57% | 5 | 101,589 | 26.21% | 2 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 6,123 | 1.58% | – | 118,686 | 30.64% | 1 | 429,851 | 605,292 | 8 | 71.02% |
| Southern | Galle | 406,428 | 68.07% | 7 | 93,486 | 15.66% | 1 | – | – | – | 30,453 | 5.10% | – | 31,201 | 5.23% | 1 | 35,523 | 8.94% | – | 620,165 | 903,163 | 9 | 68.67% |
| Southern | Matara | 317,541 | 69.83% | 6 | 74,475 | 16.38% | 1 | – | – | – | 31,009 | 6.82% | – | 9,432 | 2.07% | – | 22,277 | 4.90% | – | 476,407 | 686,175 | 7 | 69.43% |
| Southern | Hambantota | 234,083 | 66.38% | 5 | 52,170 | 14.79% | 1 | – | – | – | 18,297 | 5.19% | – | 26,268 | 7.45% | 1 | 17,039 | 6.19% | – | 369,700 | 520,940 | 7 | 70.97% |
| Northern | Jaffna | 80,830 | 24.85% | 3 | 15,276 | 4.70% | – | 63,327 | 19.47% | 1 | – | – | – | 582 | 0.18% | – | 165,297 | 50.80% | 2 | 358,079 | 593,187 | 6 | 60.37% |
| Northern | Vanni | 39,894 | 20.37% | 2 | 32,232 | 16.45% | 1 | 29,711 | 15.17% | 1 | – | – | – | 805 | 0.41% | – | 93,244 | 52.88% | 2 | 211,140 | 306,081 | 6 | 68.98% |
| Eastern | Batticaloa | 55,498 | 19.33% | 1 | 22,570 | 7.86% | – | 96,975 | 33.78% | 3 | 559 | 0.19% | – | 263 | 0.09% | – | 111,188 | 38.75% | 1 | 302,382 | 449,686 | 5 | 67.24% |
| Eastern | Ampara | 146,313 | 40.32% | 4 | 32,320 | 8.91% | – | 33,632 | 9.27% | 1 | 33,544 | 9.24% | – | 6,654 | 1.83% | – | 110,461 | 30.43% | 2 | 380,523 | 555,432 | 7 | 68.51% |
| Eastern | Trincomalee | 87,031 | 42.48% | 2 | 53,058 | 25.90% | 1 | 34,168 | 16.68% | 1 | 9,387 | 4.58% | – | 1,399 | 0.68% | – | 19,845 | 9.68% | – | 218,425 | 315,925 | 4 | 69.14% |
| North Western | Kurunegala | 651,476 | 69.56% | 12 | 189,394 | 20.22% | 3 | – | – | – | 30,073 | 3.21% | – | 35,236 | 3.76% | – | 30,436 | 3.25% | – | 978,927 | 1,417,226 | 15 | 69.07% |
| North Western | Puttalam | 239,576 | 63.10% | 6 | 65,679 | 17.30% | 2 | – | – | – | 15,741 | 4.15% | – | 14,624 | 3.85% | – | 44,061 | 11.60% | – | 410,853 | 663,673 | 8 | 61.91% |
| North Central | Anuradhapura | 331,692 | 67.22% | 7 | 98,176 | 19.90% | 2 | – | – | – | 29,961 | 6.07% | – | 11,248 | 2.28% | – | 29,115 | 4.53% | – | 522,533 | 741,862 | 9 | 70.44% |
| North Central | Polonnaruwa | 159,010 | 68.67% | 4 | 43,822 | 18.92% | 1 | – | – | – | 5,153 | 2.23% | – | 4,646 | 2.01% | – | 19,928 | 8.17% | – | 240,145 | 351,302 | 5 | 68.36% |
| Uva | Badulla | 275,180 | 58.59% | 6 | 102,958 | 21.92% | 2 | – | – | – | 36,450 | 7.76% | 1 | 11,255 | 2.40% | – | 43,863 | 9.33% | – | 503,724 | 705,772 | 9 | 71.37% |
| Uva | Monaragala | 174,730 | 64.27% | 5 | 62,014 | 22.81% | 1 | – | – | – | 10,697 | 3.93% | – | 11,624 | 4.28% | – | 12,791 | 4.71% | – | 12,991 | 399,166 | 6 | 71.36% |
| Sabaragamuwa | Ratnapura | 368,229 | 61.75% | 8 | 133,041 | 22.31% | 3 | – | – | – | 26,171 | 4.39% | – | 29,316 | 4.92% | – | 39,613 | 6.63% | – | 633,440 | 923,736 | 11 | 68.57% |
| Sabaragamuwa | Kegalle | 312,441 | 64.80% | 7 | 109,691 | 22.75% | 2 | – | – | – | 26,309 | 5.46% | – | 12,373 | 2.57% | – | 21,337 | 4.42% | – | 500,789 | 709,622 | 9 | 70.57% |
| National List | National List | — | — | 18 | — | — | 5 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 2 | — | — | 1 | — | — | 2 | — | — | 29 | — |
| Total | Total | 6,863,186 | 61.56% | 159 | 1,968,716 | 17.66% | 40 | 257,813 | 2.31% | 8 | 500,835 | 4.49% | 5 | 350,429 | 3.14% | 3 | 1,207,027 | 10.22% | 10 | 11,815,246 | 17,140,354 | 225 | 68.93% |

### Seat changes
#### List of MPs who lost their seat

| District | Incumbent | Incumbent | Incumbent | Incumbent | Held since |
| District | Party | Party | Member | Offices held | Held since |
| Kurunegala | | SLPP | Johnston Fernando | Minister of Highways | 2000 |