Parliamentary elections were held in Sri Lanka on 14 November 2024 to elect 225 members to the new parliament. The 16th Parliament of Sri Lanka was dissolved on 24 September 2024. The submission of nominations for the election commenced on 4 October and concluded on 11 October 2024 at 12:00.
The result of the election was a landslide victory for the left-wing National People's Power coalition led by recently elected president Anura Kumara Dissanayake. The NPP won 159 seats, more than any Sri Lankan political party in history, the second highest proportion of seats in the nation's history, and won every district except Batticaloa. This was the first election since 1977 where a single party managed to achieve a supermajority and the first time the Jaffna District was won by a non-Tamil political party. This election also saw a record in women's representation with 21 female MPs elected, the highest in Sri Lanka's parliamentary history, and a record number of more than 150 MPs are first-timers.
Following the election, the newly elected 17th Parliament of Sri Lanka was inaugurated on 21 November 2024.
Background Political landscape before the election The Sri Lanka People's Freedom Alliance (SLPFA), led by Mahinda Rajapaksa, won a large majority in the 2020 Sri Lankan parliamentary election on 5 August 2020. During their tenure, the government under President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa faced multiple crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic and an economic crisis, which culminated into widespread protests and the 2022 Sri Lankan political crisis.
These events led to both Gotabaya Rajapaksa fleeing the country and resigning as president, and Mahinda Rajapaksa also stepping down as prime minister. Ranil Wickremesinghe was first appointed as prime minister and later became the acting president following Gotabaya Rajapaksa's resignation. In a parliamentary vote on 20 July 2022, Wickremesinghe was elected as the 9th President of Sri Lanka, tasked with completing the remainder of Rajapaksa's term.
In the 2024 Sri Lankan presidential election held on 21 September 2024, Anura Kumara Dissanayake defeated his main rivals, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa and incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe, to become the 10th President of Sri Lanka.
As per the Parliamentary Elections Act, No. 1 of 1981, although the Sri Lankan parliament has a term of five years, the president can dissolve it after two years and six months from its first meeting or upon receiving a resolution from parliament. In spite of the 16th parliament's scheduled end in August 2025, President Dissanayake, exercising his constitutional powers and fulfilling an election pledge, dissolved parliament early on 24 September 2024.
Timeline +Key dates Date Day Event Ref. 21 September 2024 Saturday Anura Kumara Dissanayake is elected as president at the 2024 Sri Lankan presidential election. 24 September 2024 Tuesday President Dissanayake dissolved 16th parliament and called for a parliamentary election. 4 October 2024 Friday Nomination period commenced. 10 October 2024 Thursday Deadline to apply for a postal vote for eligible individuals. 11 October 2024 Friday Nomination period concluded at 12:00. 30 October 2024 Wednesday Postal voting commenced on 30 October 2024, continued on 1, 4, and 7 November, and concluded on 8 November 2024. 11 November 2024 Monday Election campaigning activities concluded at 24:00. 14 November 2024 Thursday Election day. Polling commenced at 07:00 and concluded at 16:00. 21 November 2024 Thursday First meeting of the 17th parliament at 10:00. Formal election of the Speaker. Swearing in of the elected members. Presentation of the government's policy statement by the President at 11:30.
Electoral system
The Parliament has 225 members elected for a five-year term. 196 members are elected from 22 multi-seat constituencies through an open list proportional representation system 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.
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.
Recent changes in seat allocation
On 25 September 2024, the Election Commission released details regarding the number of members to be elected from each electoral district in the upcoming parliamentary election, the number of candidates to be listed on the nomination paper, and the deposit amount required from independent groups. Recognised political parties are exempt from making a deposit.
Registered electors and seat allocation changes: 2020 to 2024 Province Electoral district Registered electors Number of allocated seats 2020 2024 2020 2024 Change (+/-) Western Colombo 1,709,209 1,765,351 19 18 1 Gampaha 1,785,964 1,881,129 18 19 1 Kalutara 972,319 1,024,244 10 11 1 Central Kandy 1,129,100 1,191,399 12 12 Matale 407,569 429,991 5 5 Nuwara Eliya 577,717 605,292 8 8 Southern Galle 867,709 903,163 9 9 Matara 659,587 686,175 7 7 Hambantota 493,192 520,940 7 7 Northern Jaffna 571,848 593,187 7 6 1 Vanni 287,024 306,081 6 6 Eastern Batticaloa 409,808 449,686 5 5 Ampara 513,979 555,432 7 7 Trincomalee 288,868 315,925 4 4 North Western Kurunegala 1,348,787 1,417,226 15 15 Puttalam 614,374 663,673 8 8 North Central Anuradhapura 693,634 741,862 9 9 Polonnaruwa 331,109 351,302 5 5 Uva Badulla 668,166 705,772 9 9 Monaragala 372,155 399,166 6 6 Sabaragamuwa Ratnapura 877,582 923,736 11 11 Kegalle 684,189 709,622 9 9 National List 29 29 Total 16,263,885 17,140,354 225 225
Recent Sri Lankan election results Election results Dates of elections Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna(SLPFA) Samagi Jana Balawegaya National People's Power Tamil National Alliance United National Party Others Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes %2019 presidential election6,924,25552.25%418,5533.16%5,564,23941.99%345,4522.35%2020 parliamentary election6,853,69059.09%2,771,98023.90%445,9583.84%327,1682.82%249,4352.15%950,6988.20%2024 presidential election342,7812.57%4,363,03532.76%5,634,91542.31%2,299,76717.27%407,4733.06%
Sri Lankan political map prior to this election 2020 Sri Lankan parliamentary election 2024 Sri Lankan presidential election Elected members of each electoral district or municipality, gaining the highest number of votes■ SLPFA ■ SJB ■ TNA ■ SLFP ■ EPDP ■ Other parties
Contesting parties
Name Symbol Ideology Leader Seats won in 2020 Seats before election Status Votes (%) Seats SLPP Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna Sinhalese nationalismRight-wing populism Mahinda Rajapaksa 59.09% SJB Samagi Jana Balawegaya Big tent Liberal conservatism Progressivism Sajith Premadasa 23.90% ITAK Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi Tamil nationalism S. Shritharan 2.82% DTNA Democratic Tamil National Alliance Tamil nationalism NPP National People's Power Democratic socialism Anti-imperialism Left-wing populism Anura Kumara Dissanayake 3.84% TNPF Tamil National People's Front Tamil nationalism Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam 0.58% NDF New Democratic Front Big tentEconomic liberalism Ranil Wickremesinghe SB Sarvajana Balaya Sinhalese nationalism Dilith Jayaweera
Total number of candidates contesting In a media release on 12 October 2024, the Election Commission announced that a total of 8,821 candidates would contest the parliamentary election. Of these, 5,564 candidates represent registered political parties, while 3,257 are contesting as independents.
Chanu Nimesha of the Socialist Party of Sri Lanka made history as the first openly transgender candidate to contest in a general election in Sri Lanka.
Members of Parliament standing down + Number of MPs standing down by party affiliation Party MPs standing down Elected Final 45 33 7 10 2 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 4 0 3 0 1 0 1 Total 59
List of MPs not standing for re-election MP Seat First elected Party Date announced National List 1977 National List Kurunegala 2020 Ratnapura 1970 Colombo 1989 Hambantota 1989 Ratnapura 1989 Polonnaruwa 1989 Colombo 2004 Gampaha 2015 National List 2020 Jaffna 2020 Galle 2015 Kandy 1989 Colombo 1994 Colombo 2000 Kalutara 2004 Anuradhapura 2010 Colombo Matale 2020 Kurunegala 1970 National List Kegalle 2010 Gampaha 2015 Ampara 2015 Ratnapura 2020 National List 2004 National List 2020 Gampaha 2010 Gampaha Kandy 2000 National List 2015 Matale 1994 National List 2020 Anuradhapura 2020 National List 1994 Gampaha 2020 Ratnapura 2020 Colombo 2020 Kegalle 2020 Monaragala 2020 Kalutara 2020 Monaragala 1994 Kandy 2010 Kandy 2020 Gampaha 2020 Puttalam 2020 Kurunegala National List 2020 Puttalam 2010 Batticaloa 2020 Galle 2020 Monaragala 2015 Badulla 2020 Nuwara Eliya 1994 Galle 2020 Polonnaruwa 2004 Vanni 2000 Vanni 2015
Election campaign Campaign finances Candidate asset declaration Under the Anti-Corruption Act, No. 9 of 2023, all election candidates are required to submit a Declaration of Assets and Liabilities to the Commissioner of Elections along with their nomination papers, covering assets and liabilities up to the date the election is announced. Candidates seeking national list nominations must also submit their declarations.
Expenditure cap and regulations On 17 October 2024, the Election Commission issued a circular setting the maximum campaign spending limit for candidates in the 2024 General Election. This cap applies to candidates, political parties, independent groups, and national list candidates, and is determined by district.
These regulations are enforced under the Regulation of Election Expenditure Act, No. 3 of 2023. Parties must submit expenditure reports to the Election Commission within 21 days of the election results being declared.
Election campaigning activities Election campaigning activities concluded at 24:00 on 11 November 2024. A silent period will be enforced until election day on 14 November 2024, during which all campaign activities are prohibited.
Election monitors On 12 November 2024, the Election Commission announced that foreign election observers would participate in monitoring the upcoming election. These include representatives from South Asian countries, Russia, Thailand, and members of the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL).
Controversies
Rejection of nomination papers YouTuber Ashen Senarathna announced his candidacy for the Sri Lankan Parliament, seeking to represent the Colombo electoral district as part of an independent group. On 11 October 2024, the Election Commission rejected his nomination, citing that it was submitted by an unauthorised individual, which led to disqualification. Senarathna plans to take legal action, claiming he was asked to wait outside while another candidate submitted the nomination.
Removal of name from the nomination list Actress Damitha Abeyratne was expected to contest the general elections from the Ratnapura electoral district under the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) ticket. However, her name did not appear on the list of candidates submitted by the SJB to the District Secretariat. Hesha Withanage, the SJB leader for Ratnapura, stated that the decision to exclude her name was made by district members.
Withdrawal from contesting election On 12 October 2024, former MP Ajith Mannapperuma withdrew from the parliamentary elections and resigned from Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), a day after submitting his nomination for the Gampaha electoral district. He cited his removal as SJB chief organiser for the Gampaha electorate. He also expressed disappointment with party leader Sajith Premadasa and his leadership.
Opinion polls
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