Marxist-leaning Anura Kumara Dissanayake and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa headed to a run-off for Sri Lanka's presidency on Sunday (Sept 22), the election body said, with a second round of counting to determine the winner using preferential votes.
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00:00Marxist-leaning Anura Kumara Dissanayake is set to be elected as the new president of
00:08Sri Lanka.
00:09The election commission said Dissanayake polled 39.5% of the counted ballots, with Premadasa
00:15finishing second at 34%.
00:18But the commission said since the two candidates failed to win the mandatory 50% of votes,
00:23a second vote count will decide the winner.
00:26Incumbent Reynal Wickremasinghe trailed behind with 17% of the votes.
00:32The final results are expected later on Sunday.
00:56The 55-year-old Dissanayake presented himself as the candidate of change for those reeling
01:18under austerity measures linked to a US$2.9 billion international monetary fund bailout.
01:25He also promised to dissolve parliament within 45 days of taking office for a fresh mandate
01:31for his policies in general elections.
01:34During the election, the government imposed a curfew from 10pm on Saturday to 6am on Sunday,
01:41hours after the polls closed.
01:43The government said the curfew was to ensure public safety.
01:46However, employees in essential and public transport services and those involved in the
01:51election were exempted from the curfew.