List of parliamentary elections in Sri Lanka
Parliamentary elections have been held in Sri Lanka since the first in 1947, under three different constitutions: the Soulbury Constitution, the 1972 Constitution, and the currently enforced 1978 Constitution. Sixteen parliamentary elections have been held up to and including the 2020 election. The seventeenth is scheduled for 14 November 2024.[1]
The current Parliament of Sri Lanka has 225 members elected for a five-year term. 196 members are elected from 22 multi-seat constituencies through an open list proportional representation with a 5% electoral threshold; voters can rank up to three candidates on the party list they vote for. The other 29 seats are elected from a national list, with list members appointed by party secretaries and seats allocated according to the island-wide proportional vote the party obtains.[2]
Every proclamation dissolving parliament must be published in The Sri Lanka Gazette and must specify the nomination period and the date of the election. The first meeting of the new parliament must occur within three months of the previous parliament's dissolution.[3]
History
editIn 1833 the Colebrooke-Cameron Commission created the Legislative Council of Ceylon, the first step in representative government in British Ceylon. Initially this council consisted of 16 members which included the British Governor, the 5 appointed members of the Executive Council of Ceylon, 4 other government officials, and 6 appointed unofficial members. In 1889 the number of appointed unofficial members was increased to 8.
Legislative Council elections: 1911–1924
editElection year | Legislative Council | Total seats | Description |
---|---|---|---|
1911[a] | 1st | 21 | 11 official and 10 non-official members. Of the non-official members, 6 were appointed by the governor and the remaining 4 were elected. |
1917 | 2nd | ||
1921[b] | 3rd | 37 | 14 official and 23 unofficial members. Of the non-official members, 4 were appointed by the governor and the remaining 19 were elected. |
1924[c] | 4th | 49 | 12 official and 37 unofficial members. Of the non-official members, 8 were appointed by the governor and the remaining 29 were elected. |
State Council elections: 1931–1936
editDuration
editState Council | Date of | Duration | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nomination | Election | First meeting | Dissolved | ||
1st | 4 May 1931 | 13–20 June 1931[d] | 6 July 1931 | 7 December 1935 | 4 years, 5 months and 1 day |
2nd | 15 January 1936 | 22 February – 7 March 1936[e] | 16 March 1936 | 4 July 1947 | 11 years, 3 months and 18 days |
Elections
editElection year | State Council | Total seats | Description |
---|---|---|---|
1931 | 1st | 58 | The State Council of Ceylon was the unicameral legislature of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), established in 1931 by the Donoughmore Constitution. It introduced universal adult franchise to the colony for the first time, replacing the Legislative Council of Ceylon, the original legislative body. |
1936 | 2nd |
Parliamentary elections: 1947–2020
editDuration
editName | Date of | Duration | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nomination | Election | First meeting | Dissolved | ||
1st | 26 July 1947 | 23 August – 20 September 1947[f] | 14 October 1947 | 8 April 1952 | 4 years, 5 months and 25 days |
2nd | 28 April 1952 | 24–30 May 1952[g] | 9 June 1952 | 18 February 1956 | 3 years, 8 months and 9 days |
3rd | 8 March 1956 | 5–10 April 1956[h] | 19 April 1956 | 5 December 1959 | 3 years, 7 months and 16 days |
4th | 4 January 1960 | 19 March 1960 | 30 March 1960 | 23 April 1960 | 24 days |
5th | 20 May 1960 | 20 July 1960 | 5 August 1960 | 17 December 1964 | 4 years, 4 months and 12 days |
6th | 11 January 1965 | 22 March 1965 | 5 April 1965 | 25 March 1970 | 4 years, 11 months and 20 days |
7th | 23 April 1970 | 27 May 1970 | 7 June 1970 | — | 1 year, 11 months and 15 days |
With the promulgation of the 1972 Constitution on 22 May 1972, the 1st National State Assembly superseded the 7th Parliament of Ceylon. | |||||
1st | — | — | 22 May 1972 | 18 May 1977 | 4 years, 11 months and 26 days |
2nd | 6 June 1977 | 21 July 1977 | 4 August 1977 | — | 1 year, 1 month and 3 days |
With the promulgation of the 1978 Constitution on 7 September 1978, the 8th Parliament of Sri Lanka (1st Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka) superseded the 2nd National State Assembly. | |||||
The 1982 referendum on extending the parliamentary term by six years was held in Sri Lanka on 22 December 1982. Through the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, the term of the 8th Parliament was extended until 4 August 1989. | |||||
8th | — | — | 7 September 1978 | 20 December 1988 | 10 years, 3 months and 13 days |
9th | 6 January 1989 | 15 February 1989 | 9 March 1989 | 24 June 1994 | 5 years, 3 months and 15 days |
10th | 11 July 1994 | 16 August 1994 | 25 August 1994 | 18 August 2000 | 5 years, 11 months and 24 days |
11th | 28 August – 4 September 2000 | 10 October 2000 | 18 October 2000 | 10 October 2001 | 11 months and 22 days |
12th | 20–27 October 2001 | 5 December 2001 | 19 December 2001 | 7 February 2004 | 2 years, 1 month and 19 days |
13th | 17–24 February 2004 | 2 April 2004 | 22 April 2004 | 9 February 2010 | 5 years, 9 months and 18 days |
14th | 19–26 February 2010 | 8 and 20 April 2010 | 22 April 2010 | 26 June 2015 | 5 years, 2 months and 4 days |
15th | 6–13 July 2015 | 17 August 2015 | 1 September 2015 | 2 March 2020 | 4 years, 6 months and 1 day |
16th | 12–19 March 2020 | 5 August 2020 | 20 August 2020 | 24 September 2024 | 4 years, 1 month and 4 days |
17th | 4–11 October 2024 | To be held on 14 November 2024 | To be convened on 21 November 2024 | TBD | 0 days |
Elections
editElection | Parliament | Total seats | Turnout | Largest party | Seats won | Seat majority | Seat percentage | Prime Minister(s) | Ref. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1947 | 1st | 95 | 55.81% | United National Party | 42 | -6 | 44.21% | D. S. Senanayake (1947–1952)[i] Dudley Senanayake (1952) |
[6][7] | |
1952 | 2nd | 70.7% | United National Party | 54 | +6 | 56.84% | Dudley Senanayake (1952–1953)[j] Sir John Kotelawala (1953–1956) |
[8][9] | ||
1956 | 3rd | 69.04% | Mahajana Eksath Peramuna | 51 | +3 | 53.68% | S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike (1956–1959)[i] Wijeyananda Dahanayake (1959–1960) |
[10][11] | ||
1960 (March) | 4th | 151 | 77.6% | United National Party | 50 | -26 | 33.11% | Dudley Senanayake | [12][13] | |
1960 (July) | 5th | 75.9% | Sri Lanka Freedom Party | 75 | -1 | 49.67% | Sirimavo Bandaranaike | [14][15] | ||
1965 | 6th | 81.13% | United National Party | 66 | -10 | 43.71% | Dudley Senanayake | [16][17] | ||
1970 | 7th | 85.2% | Sri Lanka Freedom Party | 91 | +15 | 60.26% | Sirimavo Bandaranaike | [18][19] | ||
1977[k] | 8th | 168 | 86.7% | United National Party | 140 | +55 | 83.33% | J. R. Jayewardene (1977–1978)[l] Ranasinghe Premadasa (1978–1989)[m] |
[20][21] | |
1989[n] | 9th | 225 | 63.6% | United National Party | 125 | +12 | 55.56% | Dingiri Banda Wijetunga (1989–1993)[o] Ranil Wickremesinghe (1993–1994) |
[22] | |
1994 | 10th | 76.24% | People's Alliance | 105 | -8 | 46.67% | Chandrika Kumaratunga (1994)[p] Sirimavo Bandaranaike (1994–2000)[j] Ratnasiri Wickremanayake (2000) |
[23] | ||
2000 | 11th | 75.63% | People's Alliance | 107 | -6 | 47.56% | Ratnasiri Wickremanayake | [24][25] | ||
2001 | 12th | 76.03% | United National Front | 96 | -17 | 42.67% | Ranil Wickremesinghe | [26][27] | ||
2004 | 13th | 75.96% | United People's Freedom Alliance | 105 | -8 | 46.67% | Mahinda Rajapaksa (2004–2005)[q] Ratnasiri Wickremanayake (2005–2010) |
[28][29] | ||
2010 | 14th | 61.26% | United People's Freedom Alliance | 144 | +31 | 64% | D. M. Jayaratne (2010–2015)[j] Ranil Wickremesinghe (2015)[r] |
[30] | ||
2015 | 15th | 77.66% | United National Front | 106 | -7 | 47.11% | Ranil Wickremesinghe (2015–2018)[s] Mahinda Rajapaksa (2018)[t] Ranil Wickremesinghe (2018–2019)[u][j] Mahinda Rajapaksa (2019–2020)[v] |
[31] | ||
2020 | 16th | 75.89% | Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance | 145 | +32 | 64.44% | Mahinda Rajapaksa (2020–2022)[j] Ranil Wickremesinghe (2022)[w][x] Dinesh Gunawardena (2022–2024)[y][j] Harini Amarasuriya (2024)[z] |
[32] | ||
2024 | 17th | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Notes
edit- ^ McCallum Reforms of 1910
- ^ First Manning Reforms of 1920
- ^ Second Manning Reforms of 1923
- ^ 13 and 15–20 June 1931
- ^ 22, 24–29 February, 2–3, 5, and 7 March 1936
- ^ 23, 25–30 August, 1, 4, 6, 8–11, 13, 15–18 and 20 September 1947
- ^ 24, 26, 28 and 30 May 1952
- ^ 5, 7, and 10 April 1956
- ^ a b Died in office.
- ^ a b c d e f Resigned.
- ^ The election was delayed until 1977 using the 1972 Constitution, instead of holding it by 1975 as required under the old Soulbury Constitution.
- ^ Appointed as the 1st Executive President of Sri Lanka through a constitutional amendment on 4 February 1978.
- ^ Elected as president on 19 December 1988 and was sworn in on 2 January 1989.
- ^ The 1989 parliamentary election was the first since 1977, as the election due by 1983 had been cancelled by the 1982 referendum.
- ^ Elected unanimously by the parliament as president to complete the remainder of Ranasinghe Premadasa's term and was sworn in on 7 May 1993.
- ^ Elected as president on 9 November 1994 and was sworn in on 12 November 1994.
- ^ Elected as president on 17 November 2005 and was sworn in on 19 November 2005.
- ^ Appointed as prime minister by President Maithripala Sirisena on 9 January 2015 following his victory in the 2015 presidential election.
- ^ Dismissed from office by President Maithripala Sirisena on 26 October 2018.
- ^ Appointed by President Maithripala Sirisena as prime minister on 26 October 2018. After failing to secure a vote of majority support in the House, Rajapaksa's duties were suspended by the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. Subsequently resigned from office on 15 December 2018.
- ^ Restored as prime minister after the 2018 Sri Lankan constitutional crisis on 16 December 2018.
- ^ Appointed as prime minister by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on 21 November 2019 following his victory in the 2019 presidential election.
- ^ Appointed as prime minister by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on 12 May 2022.
- ^ Elected by the parliament as president on 20 July 2022 and was sworn in on 21 July 2022.
- ^ Appointed as prime minister by President Ranil Wickremesinghe on 22 July 2022.
- ^ Appointed as prime minister by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on 24 September 2024 following his victory in the 2024 presidential election.
References
edit- ^ "Our History". Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2024. Archived from the original on 9 October 2024. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
- ^ "The Electoral System". The Parliament of Sri Lanka. 14 December 2012. Archived from the original on 6 September 2024. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
- ^ "The Constitution of the D. S. R. of Sri Lanka" (PDF). The Parliament of Sri Lanka. 30 March 2023. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
- ^ a b "Duration of Parliament". Parliament of Sri Lanka. 25 September 2024. Archived from the original on 28 October 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary Election Results". Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 23 September 2024. Archived from the original on 23 September 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Results of Parliamentary General Election – 1947" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 27 October 2024.
- ^ "1947 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Results of Parliamentary General Election – 1952" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "1952 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Results of Parliamentary General Election – 1956" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "1956 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Results of Parliamentary General Election – 19/03/1960" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "1960 March General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Results of Parliamentary General Election – 20/07/1960" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "1960 July General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Results of Parliamentary General Election – 22/03/1965" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "1965 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Results of Parliamentary General Election – May 27, 1970" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "1970 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary Election – 1977" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "1977 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 25 February 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary General Election – 1989" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary General Election – 1994" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary Elections 2000" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "2000 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 10 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary Elections 2001" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "2001 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 15 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary General Election 2004" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "2004 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. 2012. Archived from the original on 23 March 2012. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary General Election 2010" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary Elections 2015" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 August 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Parliament Election 2020 – Votes, Seats and National List Seats by Party – All Island" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 7 August 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 July 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.