| Parliament name |
Parliament |
| Structure of parliament |
Unicameral |
| BACKGROUND |
| Dates of election / renewal (from/to) |
17 August 2015 |
| Purpose of elections |
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) won the elections as the largest party in a coalition known as the United National Front for Good Governance (UNFGG, see note). The UNFGG took 11 more seats than the opposition coalition, the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), led by former President Mahinda Rajapakse. The UPFA includes the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) which is headed by incumbent President Maithripala Sirisena. Despite belonging to an opposition coalition, some SLFP members opposed Mr. Rajapakse and allied themselves to the governing coalition, the UNFGG. During the elections, the major parties promised good governance, transparency, economic progress and stability in the country. On 21 August, Mr. Wickremasinghe was sworn in as the Prime Minister. Later that day, the UNP and the SLFP signed a Memorandum of Understanding to form a new government. The two parties agreed to work together for at least two years. The 46-member Cabinet, formed in September, comprises 33 ministers from the UNFGG and 13 ministers from the SLFP.
The 2015 elections were the first to be held under President Sirisena, the former health minister, who defeated the long-serving President Rajapaksa in presidential elections, held in January 2015. In keeping with the new President's electoral promise, Parliament passed the 19th amendment to the Constitution on 28 April 2015. In particular the amendment re-introduced a two-term limit for each President (lifted in 2010 under President Rajapaksa) and removed the President's power to dissolve Parliament until it has completed four-and-a-half years of its five-year term. Before the amendments, the President could dissolve Parliament after only one year.
Note:
The UNFGG included the UNP, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA), All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC), Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) as well as SLFP members who opposed former President Rajapakse.
|
Date of previous elections: 8 & 20 April 2010
Date of dissolution of the outgoing legislature: 26 June 2015
Timing of election: Delayed elections
Expected date of next elections: August 2021
Number of seats at stake: 225 (full renewal)
Number of candidates: 6,151 (5,595 men, 556 women)
Percentage of women candidates: 9%
Number of parties contesting the election: 36*
*12 political parties and 24 independent groups
Number of parties winning seats: 6
Alternation of power: Not applicable
Note: Presidential system.
Number of parties in government: 6*
*The government also includes a faction of the SLP opposing former President Rajapakse.
Names of parties in government: United National Party (UNP), Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), a faction of the SLP opposing former President Rajapakse, Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA), Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC) and Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU)
Date of the first session of the new parliament: 1 September 2015
Name of the new Speaker: Mr. Karu Jayasuriya (United National Party, UNP) |
| STATISTICS |
| Voter turnout |
| Round no 1 | 17 August 2015 |
Number of registered electors
Voters
Blank or invalid ballot papers
Valid votes |
15'044'490
11'684'111 (77.66%)
|
|
Notes
|
|
| Distribution of votes |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Candidates |
Votes |
|
|
% |
|
|
| United National Party (UNP) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Lanka Tamil State Party (Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi, ITAK) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| People's Liberation Front (JVP) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats |
|
Round no 1
|
| Political Group |
Total
|
Constituency seats |
National seats |
|
|
| United National Party (UNP) |
106
|
93 |
13 |
|
|
| United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) |
95
|
83 |
12 |
|
|
| Lanka Tamil State Party (Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi, ITAK) |
16
|
14 |
2 |
|
|
| People's Liberation Front (JVP) |
6
|
4 |
2 |
|
|
| Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) |
1
|
1 |
0 |
|
|
| Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) |
1
|
1 |
0 |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to sex |
Men
Women
Percent of women |
214
11
4.89%
|
| Distribution of seats according to age |
|
|
|
| Distribution of seats according to profession |
|
|
| Comments |
Sources:
Parliament (24.08.2015, 09.09.2015, 11.09.2015, 07.01.2016)
http://www.crisisgroup.org
http://www.bbc.com |
|
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Last elections module
