ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Elections Commission is urging voters to show up and vote in the parliamentary election on November 15.
“Voting is your constitutional right. So it is your duty to exercise that right,” Elections Commission Chairman R M A L Rathnayake said on Friday (8).
Over 3.5 million citizens eligible to vote, did not vote in the 2024 Presidential Election.
He urged voters to visit their polling stations between 7 am and 4 pm on November 14.
Sri Lanka will choose 225 representatives for its 10th Parliament. The new Parliament is scheduled to meet on November 21.
The silent period, when all campaigning ceases, will begin at midnight on November 11, Rathnayake said.
Campaigning by those seeking to get elected to the country’s Parliament has been minimal compared to previous years.
“Postal voting has concluded, and we have finished distributing polling cards.
“Those who haven’t received their polling cards should call over at their nearest post office and collect it upon producing photo identification.”
Rathnayake said voters could still vote without the polling card, provided they have any of the accepted forms of identification with them.
These include a valid national identification card, passport, driver’s license, retirement ID, senior citizen ID, EC ID, reverend’s ID, or a temporary identification issued by the Department for Registration of Persons.
Voters must mark ‘X’ on the ballot paper for a party for the vote to be valid, before proceeding to mark up to 3 preferences for candidates; with ‘X’s for the number(s) denoting a candidate. (Colombo/Nov8/2024)