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Also-rans on the sidelines in the local polls ground offensive
View(s):By Kasun Warakapitiya
Former heavyweights in local councils, youth and female candidates are contesting the local elections in a couple of months.
The campaigns kicked off after nominations for 339 councils closed on Thursday, and the election commission fixed May 6 as polling day.
The National People’s Power (NPP) has launched its campaign aiming to further strengthen its hand, while the opposition is trying to deal a blow to the ruling party’s popularity and regain at least some of the votes they lost in previous elections.
NPP members at the Colombo District Secretariat to handover nominations for the polls. Pic by Akila Jayawardena
Deputy Minister of Housing T. B. Sarath told the Sunday Times that voters are being encouraged to establish the NPP’s power in local government institutes so that the flow of power could be maintained as the president, government and local government are formed by the same party.
The Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), which is the key opposition party, said the campaign theme is to expose the government’s deceiving nature.
According to SJB National Organiser Tissa Attanayake, Dr R. Haniffa was named as the Colombo mayoral candidate. Strong candidates known to the people are being placed.
Matale District Secretariat: Putting up the nomination lists. Pic by Mahesh Keerthirathne
He added next week SJB leader Sajith Premadasa will have a series of meetings district-wise where he will meet all the SJB local government candidates and discuss how the campaign would be carried out.
United National Party (UNP) General Secretary Thalatha Athukorala said she was looking into the rejection of nominations. “I was signing nomination papers until Thursday morning, so I was so busy that I could not even see who the key candidates were.”
Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is aiming to make its presence felt after heavy defeats at presidential and general elections in 2024.
The party’s General Secretary, Sagara Kariyawasam, told the Sunday Times the party would only name group leaders.
“We would allow leaders to emerge out of the groups, ones who are most active and obtain the most votes, to be made the mayoral candidates.”
Some nominations of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), which is beset with internal struggles, were rejected.
The party has decided to file legal action after the EC released detailed information on the areas where nominations were rejected. The SLFP’s Colombo nomination list and nominations in Kurunegala were rejected.
The party’s General Secretary, Duminda Dissanayake, told the Sunday Times that the process of the nominations should not be so complex that entire lists get rejected.
He said that the EC should have a system to notify of any issues in the nomination papers before they are rejected.
Apart from that, newly formed parties such as the Sarwa Jana Balaya as well as the United Republican Front are contesting some local government institutions.
The United Republican Front, led by Patali Champika Ranawaka, is contesting 37 institutions under the ‘pencil’ symbol. The party is contesting the local government elections in 11 districts, including Colombo, Monaragala, Kandy, Matale, Kurunegala, Batticaloa, Hambantota and Galle.
Colombo District Secretary Ginige Prasanna said that out of the 165 nominations, 148 were accepted. The nomination papers of 10 political parties and 7 independent groups were rejected.
NPP’s Colombo mayoral candidate, Vraie Cally Balthazaar, said her team consists of former municipal councillors, youth and female candidates.
All smiles: At the Ampara District Secretariat. Pic by H. A . D. Gnanasiri
She noted the experience of campaigning at the ground level during the presidential and general elections.
SJB’s Colombo mayoral candidate Dr Ruvaiz Haniffa, who was named yesterday at the party office, said that in line with the party’s vision and leadership’s guidance, they have been able to field a strong team of candidates.
Mayoral candidate Haniffa said that with the team’s talent alone, they can easily win the upcoming election. He added that people have no other option, and they expect a better future with the SJB team and candidates.
Dr Haniffa is the grandson of former Speaker M.H. Mohamad and was a past president of the Sri Lanka Medical Association. He is also a lecturer at the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Colombo. He is a first-time candidate and a newcomer to politics.
Rosy Senanayake, former mayor and former legislator Eran Wickeremaratne, said that they are not contesting. Ms Senanayake said she will support the UNP candidates and participate in canvassing as well.
Anuradhapura District Secretariat: All abuzz with nomination handing over activities. Pic by Thisara Samal
Former SLPP councillor Milinda Rajapaksha told the Sunday Times that he was not contesting but would support the party’s candidates.
He said the SLPP’s ground-level candidates have not changed and include former members of local councils.
The SLPP’s leading candidate as well as group leader Ajantha Liyanage was a former member of the CMC and the Provincial Council.
He said he believed that the facilities for underprivileged families in Colombo city limits had to be improved along with their quality of life. He said as a party they are calling on the people to elect them so that they could improve their lives.
The SLPP nominations include medical doctors, youth and women candidates representing a wide range of professions.
In the Galle District, among the former councillors in the running is Galle city’s former deputy mayor, Fows Niyas. He is contesting on the UNP ticket.
However, the SJB has not named a mayoral candidate for Galle. Former Galle mayor Priyantha Sahabandu too is contesting under the SLPP ticket. The NPP had named Warshadura Anupama Maduwanthi as its Galle mayoral candidate.
Matale Returning Officer Thejani Thilakaratne said that 81 nomination papers were accepted, while 14 were rejected. She said that 18 recognised political parties and eight independent groups submitted nomination papers. The lists of five independent groups were rejected.
In the Nuwara Eliya District, 120 recognised political parties and independent groups have submitted nominations for the Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council and 12 local government institutes.
Puttalam District Secretariat. Pix by Jayaratne Wikramaarachchci and Hiran Priyankara
Jaffna District Secretary M. Pratheepan said that out of 159 nominations submitted for the seven local government councils in the Jaffna District, 124 nominations were accepted and 35 were rejected. The nominations were submitted by 136 political parties and 23 independent groups.
Additional reporting by: Sugathapala Diyagahage, Shane Seneviratne, Mahesh Keerthiratne, Loha Thayalan, Shelton Hettiarchchi
| Mixed system for local govt. polls Sri Lanka’s Local Government elections elect mayors and officials for municipal councils across 339 polling divisions. These councils manage essential services such as electricity, water, drainage, road maintenance, garbage collection, and public health. The election follows a mixed system: 60% of council members are elected through the first-past-the-post system, while 40% are chosen through proportional representation. Candidates are selected from two nomination papers—wards and party lists. Each local government area is divided into wards, with one council member elected per ward. Colombo, for example, has 66 wards. Voters mark their ballot for a political party and seats are distributed proportionally based on the total votes received. If a party wins all wards, proportional allocation does not apply. Instead, additional seats are reassigned to other candidates through the party list system. In some cases, the proportional system leads to an “overhang,” where extra seats are awarded beyond the designated limit for a division.
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| Kandy tops rejected listMost of the rejected nominations were from Kandy, District Secretary Indika Udawatta said. Of the 210 nominations submitted for one municipal council, four urban councils and 17 Pradeshiya Sabhas, 58 were rejected, he said. Accordingly, 185 recognised political parties and 26 independent groups had submitted nominations. Mr Udawatta said, adding that 52 nominations from recognised political parties were among the rejected. Chief monks select a group of educated candidates For the first time, chief incumbents of 69 temples in Kaundasala, Kandy, have come together to field an independent group of laypeople. Speaking on behalf of the association of chief incumbents, Venerable Pallegama Samitha Therea said the independent group called Swadina Mahajana Sabawa had one list of 44 individuals who were educated and free of corruption. The selection was carried out on March 18. The Thera said that the candidates fielded by them are vested with the responsibility to carry out development in their areas. The Thera added that the chief incumbent association had taken a strict stance not to field any monks as candidates. Georgian national’s nomination rejected Matale District secretary Thejani Thilkaratane said that the nomination of Georgian national Maiyya Dondesgay, who came forward as an independent candidate was rejected due to failure to properly attest the nomination paper.
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