Mandate for change in Sri Lanka

Managing state expenditures will likely help Dissanayake put the economy back on track.

The election for Sri Lanka’s executive presidency was held on September 21. As was widely expected, Anura Kumara Dissanayake from the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)—a part of the 20-group alliance National Peoples Power (NPP) coalition—was elected president. This was the first time in the country’s history that no candidate secured the mandatory 50 percent vote to get elected, requiring the counting of second preferential votes.