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Sri Lanka Voting % Live: Brisk polling recorded for 7th Presidential elections in Sri Lanka,Sri lanka voting % live updates, sri lanka presidential election 2015, sri lanka presidential election polling %, sri Lankan voters, Mahinda Rajapaksa
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- Last Updated: Thursday, 22 January 2015 21:26
Sri Lanka Voting % Live: Brisk polling recorded for 7th Presidential elections in Sri Lanka
Voting in the seventh presidential elections in Sri Lanka is reported to be taking place at a brisk pace. Barring a few stray incidents of alleged poll code violations, the voting process has so far been declared as being peaceful. Reports are saying that a hand-grenade was thrown near Point Pedro on the Jaffna Peninsula, but no one has been injured.
Polling highlights:-
- Men and women voters joined long lines at most polling centres in the island nation, and officials predicted a turnout of over 80 percent from among the 14.5 million voters, media reports said.
- The results will be known Friday.
- More than 25 percent of balloting took place in the northern town of Kilinochchi
- Brisk polling has been reported from all parts of Sri Lanka for the 7th Presidential elections on Thursday.
- As per analysts, a 75 per cent voter turn-out can be expected in what is being projected as a tight contest between 19 presidential candidates, including incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa and his former health minister Maithripala Sirisena.
- Some analysts are predicting an 80 per cent plus voter turnout. In past presidential polls, Sri Lanka has seen over 70 percent polling.
- Closer to Colombo, voter turnout hit 50 percent within hours after polling centres opened at 7 a.m.
The Tamil areas of North and East and the Singhala-Buddhist majority areas of South are all reporting long queues outside polling stations.
- Earlier, Indian election observer S Y Quraishi asked the Election Commission to provide for 200 buses for the use of 12000 internally displaced people living in Puttalam, Tamil Nadu, since they are registered in Vavuniya, over 100 kilometers away. Indian poll monitors have also confirmed peaceful polling in all parts of the country.
Essentially, the polls may end up being a direct contest between the ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) of which Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Freedom Party is a part, and Sirisena's opposition New Democratic Front. The former's symbol is the betel leaf, while the latter is the swan.
- Rajapaksa is seeking a third consecutive term as president, and had looked unstoppable in terms of popularity with the masses when announced the snap presidential poll for January 8 two months ago.
However, the opposition has repeatedly accused him and his family of skimming large amounts of money from infrastructure projects funded through foreign loans for blatant nepotism. He has been criticised for placing his brothers in key positions and for running the state like a family business.
- Srisena, backed by the main opposition United National Party, is expected to win the ethnic minority vote which makes up 30 per cent of the Sri Lanka's population.
Rajapaksa is popular among the Sinhala majority, but Tamils regard him with suspicion and anger. The Tamil vote may be the turning point.
Voting started in Sri Lanka's presidential election Thursday, which is tipped to be a close race with the incumbent president Mahinda Rajapaksa fighting for an unprecedented third term.
Long lines of voters were observed as polling stations were opened, Xinhua reported. More than 14.5 million Sri Lankans are eligible to cast their votes at Thursday's polling. Rajapaksa and New Democratic Front (NDF) candidate Maithripala Sirisena are the main contenders, though 17 others are also in the fray.
"I'm confident that the voting will be peaceful," Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya said ahead of the voting.
The Elections Department has put in place elaborate arrangements to ensure that the election is conducted smoothly while special security arrangements, including 71,000 policemen, have been assigned by the police and security forces. There will be 1,400 counting centers across nation.