Ranil Wickremesinghe
Sri Lanka: Ranil Wickremesinghe wins presidential election
Colombo: Acting President Ranil Wickremesinghe clinched the Presidential election held in the Sri Lankan Parliament on Wednesday.
Ranil Wickremesinghe obtained 134 votes while Dullas Alahapperume obtained 82 votes and Anura Kumara Dissanayake has obtained 3 votes, reports Daily Mirror.
Sri Lankan legislators voted to elect a new President on Wednesday, days after Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled the country amid protests against the ongoing economic crisis.
Ranil Wickremesinghe, who is also the PM of the nation, was nominated for the role by the ruling party.
However, protesters even agitated against Ranil in recent days and want him to go.
Sri Lanka to vote to elect a new President today
Ranil Wickremesinghe will now have a mandate to serve out the rest of Rajapaksa's term, which ends in November 2024.
Sri Lanka is effectively bankrupt and facing acute shortages of food, fuel and other basic supplies and therefore, the country needs a stable government to continue stalled negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a bailout package.
Rajapaksa's administration and family, which has ruled the country for nearly two decades, have been blamed for the current crisis.
He fled to the Maldives last week after crowds took over government buildings, demanding political leaders - including Wickremesinghe - step down.
Rajapaksa then flew to Singapore and officially resigned late on Thursday.
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