At Stake in this Election: 

• All 225 seats of the Sri Lankan Parliament 

Government Structure:  

• Chief of State: President Anura Kumara DISSANAYAKE (since 23 September 2024) 

• Head of Government: Prime Minister Harini AMARASURIYA (since 24 September 2024) 

• Assembly: unicameral Parliament with 225 seats. 

Electoral System:  

• The President is directly elected by a ranked choice vote system to a 5-year term. 

• The Prime Minister is appointed by the President. 

• 196 of the 225 members of Parliament are elected by ranked choice vote in multi-seat constituencies. The remaining 29 seats are elected by nationwide proportional representation. All members are elected to 5-year terms. 

Last Election:  

In the last election in 2020, the Sri Lanka People’s Front won a majority with 145 of 225 seats. Voter turnout was 76%. 

Information for Voters: 

FAQ: For Voters (in English, Tamil, and Sinhala) 

New/Unique in this Election:  

In September, Sri Lanka held a presidential election, the winner, now President DISSANAYAKE, is a part of the National People’s Power Party, which currently holds 3 of 225 seats in Parliament. To strengthen his party’s standing in Parliament, President DISSANAYAKE dissolved Parliament and called snap elections.  

Key Deadlines: 

• Candidate registration deadline: 11 October 2024 

• Voter registration deadline: Not applicable, voter registration is passive. 

Main Parties in this Election:   

• Sri Lanka People’s Front / Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) 

• • Leader: Sagara KARIYAWASAM 

• • Seats won in the last election: 145 of 225 

• United People’s Power / Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) 

• • Leader: RATHNAYAKA MUDIYANSELAGE Ranjith Madduma Bandara 

• • Seats won in the last election: 54 

• Sri Lankan Tamil State Party / Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (ITAK) 

• • Leader PATHMANATHAN Sathiyalingam 

• • Seats won in the last election: 10 

• National People’s Power / Jathika Jana Balawegaya  (JJB) 

• • Leader: Nihal ABEYSINGHE 

• • Seats won in the last election: 3 

• Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) 

• • Leader: Douglas DEVANDANDA 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 

• United National Party (UNP) 

• • Leader: KISHAN Theodore 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 

• Tamil Peoples Liberation Tigers / Thamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP) 

• • Leader: P. Prashanthan 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 

• Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 

• All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC) 

• • Leader: S. SUBAIRDEEN 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 

• National Congress (NC) 

• • Leader: A. L. M. ATHAWULLA 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 

• Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) 

• • Leader: M. Nizam KARIYAPPER 

• • Seats won in the last election: 1 

Population and Registered Voters: 

• Population:  22,037,000 (2023 est.) 

• Registered Voters: 17,140,354 

Gender Data: 

• Female Population:  11,428,453 (2023 est.) 

• CEDAW Status: Signed 17 Jul 1980, Ratified 05 Oct 1981  

• Gender Quota: No  

• Female Candidates in this election: Yes 

• Number of Female Legislators (pre-election): 12 of 225 (5%) in the Parliament 

• Human Development Index (HDI) Position: 0.780, High, rank 78 (2022)  

• Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: 53.4 (2023) 

Disability Data: 

• CRPD Status: Signed 30 Mar 2007, Ratified 08 Feb 2016 

• Projected population with a disability: 3,525,920 (2023 est.) 

IFES Resources: 

• Does IFES have a presence in Sri Lanka: Yes, field office.  

• Election FAQs: Yes

• Election Access: Yes 

• ElectionJudgments: Yes, 11 judgements.