Colombo: Anura Kumara Dissanayaka, the 55-year-old leader of the leftist Janatha Vimukthi Peremuna party, has been declared the winner of the election, according to the Election Commission of Sri Lanka.
He will be the 9th Executive President of Sri Lanka, beating Sajith Premadasa after the country's first ever Presidential Election run-off, reported Daily Mirror. The election commission made the announcement after a second vote count, the first in the country's history. Incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe came third and eliminated after the first round, reported Al Jazeera.
Saturday's election marked the third time that Ranil Wickremesinghe - unsuccessfully - ran for president. His previous two bids for the top job were in 1999 and 2005.
The president-elect in a post on X called for the unity of Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, and all Sri Lankans for a new beginning. (ANI)
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