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Sri Lanka Marxist candidate takes early lead in presidential vote
Dissanayaka had 60.21% of the 164,000 votes counted, out of just over 700,000. Public servants involved in conducting the election are entitled to post their ballots, which are the first to be counted. About 76% of the 17.1 million person electorate turned out for Saturday's vote, and final results are expected later Sunday. The election has turned into a referendum on incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe's austerity measures, implemented in line with a $2.9 billion bailout loan he secured from the IMF early last year. The 55-year-old Dissanayaka had vowed to renegotiate the unpopular IMF agreement under which Wickremesinghe had doubled income taxes, removed energy subsidies and raised prices. The initial results showed opposition leader Sajith Premadasa had 19.98, almost neck-and-neck with Wickremesinghe who had 18.59%. Related: Sri Lanka: 2024-09-21 Sri Lanka votes in first poll since economic collapse Sri Lanka: 2024-09-16 Sri Lankans' fury forced the powerful Rajapaksa clan out. Now its heir is running for president Sri Lanka: 2024-07-30 Iran says it has seized a tanker carrying counterfeit oil in the Persian Gulf Posted by: Fred 2024-09-22 |
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