2005 Sri Lankan presidential election

Presidential elections were held in Sri Lanka on 17 November 2005. Nominations were accepted on 7 September 2005 and electoral participation was 73.73%. Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa of the governing United People's Freedom Alliance was elected, receiving 50.3% of all votes cast.

2005 Sri Lankan presidential election
17 November 2005
Turnout73.73%
 
Nominee Mahinda Rajapaksa Ranil Wickremesinghe
Party SLFP UNP
Alliance UPFA UNF
Popular vote 4,887,152 4,706,366
Percentage 50.29% 48.43%
President before election

Chandrika Kumaratunga
SLFP

 Elected President

Mahinda Rajapaksa
SLFP

Presidential term controversy

At first, there was doubt whether the election would be held at all. President Chandrika Kumaratunga had called the 1999 election one year ahead of schedule; she argued that the extra year should be appended to her second term, and filed suit to do this. The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka rejected her claims and the election went ahead.

Campaign

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa quickly emerged as the candidate for the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and Ranil Wickremesinghe for the United National Party. Both candidates tried to round up the support of minor parties. Rajapaksa needed to re-assemble the alliance with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna that existed at the parliamentary level (the United People's Freedom Alliance). After he agreed to reject federalism and renegotiate the ceasefire with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the JVP and the Jathika Hela Urumaya endorsed him.

After that, Wickremasinghe's only real hope of victory was through the support of the island's ethnic minorities, given his generally more conciliatory stance on the ethnic issue. He secured the endorsement of the main Muslim party, the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, and the Ceylon Workers' Congress representing the estate Tamils. He could not, however, obtain the backing of the main Sri Lankan Tamil party, the Tamil National Alliance. Wickremasinghe's hopes for victory were effectively dashed when the LTTE ordered Tamil voters, most of whom would likely have voted for him, to boycott the polls.

Economic issues also worked to Rajapaksa's favour. Sri Lanka had enjoyed strong growth under Wickremasinghe's free-market policies when he was prime minister from 2001 to 2004, but he had also pursued controversial privatizations which Rajapaksa promised to halt. Rajapaksa also promised a policy of economic nationalism.

Results
CandidatePartyVotes%
Mahinda RajapaksaSri Lanka Freedom Party4,887,15250.29
Ranil WickremesingheUnited National Party4,706,36648.43
Siritunga JayasuriyaUnited Socialist Party35,4250.36
A. A. SuraweeraNational Development Front31,2380.32
Victor HettigodaUnited Lanka People's Party14,4580.15
Chamil JayaneththiNew Left Front9,2960.10
Aruna de SoyzaRuhuna People's Party7,6850.08
Wimal GeeganageSri Lanka National Front6,6390.07
Anura de SilvaUnited Lalith Front6,3570.07
Ajith ArachchigeDemocratic Unity Alliance5,0820.05
Wije DiasSocialist Equality Party3,5000.04
Nelson PereraSri Lanka Progressive Front2,5250.03
Hewaheenipellage DharmadwajaUnited National Alternative Front1,3160.01
Total9,717,039100.00
Valid votes9,717,03998.88
Invalid/blank votes109,7391.12
Total votes9,826,778100.00
Registered voters/turnout13,327,16073.73
Source: Election Commission

District results

Official district-by-district results of the election are listed below:[1]

Districts won by Rajapaksa
Districts won by Wickremesinghe
District Province Rajapaksapercentage Wickremesinghepercentage Otherspercentage Turnout
Colombo Western 534,431 47.96% 569,627 51.12% 10,192 0.92% 76.75%
Gampaha Western 596,698 54.78% 481,764 44.23% 10,815 0.99% 80.71%
Kalutara Western 341,693 55.48% 266,043 43.20% 8,124 1.32% 81.43%
Mahanuwara Central 315,672 44.30% 387,150 54.33% 9,798 1.37% 79.65%
Matale Central 120,533 48.09% 125,937 50.25% 4,150 1.66% 79.04%
Nuwara Eliya Central 99,550 27.97% 250,428 70.37% 5,897 1.66% 80.78%
Galle Southern 347,223 58.41% 239320 40.26% 7,925 1.33% 81.94%
Matara Southern 279411 61.85% 165827 36.71% 6,484 1.44% 80.96%
Hambantota Southern 202,918 63.43% 112,712 35.23% 4,295 1.34% 81.41%
Jaffna Northern 1,967 25.00% 5,523 70.20% 1,034 4.8% 1.21%
Vanni Northern 17,197 20.36% 65,798 77.89% 2,879 1.75% 34.30%
Batticaloa Eastern 28,836 18.87% 121,514 79.51% 4,265 1.62% 48.51%
Digamadulla Eastern 122,329 42.88% 159,198 55.81% 6,681 1.31% 72.7%
Trincomalee Eastern 55,680 37.04% 92,197 61.33% 4,551 1.63% 63.84%
Kurunegala North Western 468,507 52.56% 418,809 46.72% 17,639 0.72% 80.51%
Puttalam North Western 160,686 48.14% 169,264 50.71% 3,833 1.15% 71.68%
Anuradhapura North Central 231,040 55.08% 182,956 42.62% 5,438 2.3% 78.98%
Polonnaruwa North Central 110,499 52.61% 97,142 46.25% 2,389 1.14% 80.43%
Badulla Uva 192,734 45.18% 226,582 53.11% 7,283 1.71% 81.29%
Monaragala Uva 126,094 56.94% 92,244 41.65% 3,112 1.41% 81.16%
Ratnapura Sabaragamuwa 294,260 53.01% 252,838 45.55% 7,976 1.44% 83.89%
Kegalle Sabaragamuwa 239,184 51.02% 223,483 47.67% 6,106 1.31% 81.19%

Maps
  • Winners of polling divisions
    Winners of polling divisions
  • Majorities according to polling divisions
    Majorities according to polling divisions
  • Majorities according to electoral districts
    Majorities according to electoral districts

References
  1. "Result of Presidential Election 2005 (District)" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2009-03-04. Retrieved 2010-09-03.
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