Sri Lanka President Polls: Presidential elections in Sri Lanka today, for the first time in 44 years, direct elections will be held

Sri Lanka's parliament will directly elect a president in a triangular contest on Wednesday for the first time in 44 years, with last-minute political maneuvering indicating Dullas Alhapperuma's lead over caretaker President Ranil Wickremesinghe. He is supported by opposition parties as well as most of the MPs of his parent party. Wickremesinghe, Alhapperuma and Left-wing Janata Vimukti Peramuna (JVP) leader Anura Kumara Disanayake were on Tuesday proposed by lawmakers as the three candidates for the July 20 presidential election.

Rajapaksa fled the country after the protest

Elections will be held today for a new president after Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who fled the country, resigned from the presidency due to protests erupting over his failure to deal with the worst economic crisis the country has ever faced. SLPP president G L Peiris said on Tuesday that most members of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) party favored electing detached faction leader Alhapperuma for the presidency and prominent opposition leader Sajith Premadasa as prime minister. Huh. However, analysts here believe that 73-year-old Wickremesinghe is leading.

SJB supports Alhapperuma

In a politically significant move, leader of major opposition SJB Premadasa on Tuesday extended his support to Alhapperuma. Alhapperuma thanked Premadasa for supporting him and withdrawing from the presidential election. Later, Alhapperuma and Premadasa attended a joint press conference. According to the media, in another development in favor of Alhapperuma, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) has decided to vote for him in the election.

Wickremesinghe, on the other hand, did not find support from the popular Aragalaya anti-government movement. Aragalaya leader Harinda Fonseca said, "We reject Ranil Wickremesinghe as a legitimate candidate for the presidency. However, the most decisive factor that could lead to Wickremesinghe is the personal insecurity of SLPP MPs. More than 70 of them faced arson and attacks and one was killed.

Security is the biggest issue in the presidential election

Columnist Kusal Perera said, "The most deciding factor will be personal safety. Even those whose homes weren't damaged fear they might be in danger. They need someone who can make a firm decision." He said that Wickremesinghe had shown enough intention to be able to bring the security situation already under control. Wazira Abeywardene, a key aide of Wickremesinghe, claimed that the caretaker president would emerge the winner with 125 votes. Meanwhile, SLPP chairman Peirce said his party's majority is in favor of appointing Alhapperuma as president.