Sri Lankan local government elections, 2018

Sri Lankan local elections, 2018

← 2011 10 February 2018 2022 →
340 local authorities
First party Second party   Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa Ranil Wickremasinghe Party Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna United National Front Seats before New Party 1,157 Popular vote 4,968,762 3,625,510 Percentage 40.54% 29.41% Councillors 3,386 2,393 Local Authorities 249 42   Third party Fourth party   Leader Maithripala Sirisena Anura Kumara Dissanayaka Party United People's Freedom Alliance Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna Seats before 2,639 At least 74 Popular vote 1,487,960 695,523 Percentage 12.07% 5.76% Councillors 1,036 432 Local Authorities 11 0   Fifth party   Leader R. Sampanthan Party Tamil National Alliance Seats before 282 Popular vote 339,675 Percentage 2.64% Councillors 407 Local Authorities 38

Local elections were held in Sri Lanka on 10 February 2018. 15.8 million Sri Lankans were eligible to elect 8,293 members to 340 local authorities (24 municipal councils, 41 urban councils and 275 divisional councils) in the country. It was the largest election in Sri Lankan history. This was also the first election under the mixed electoral system where 60% of members were elected using first-past-the-post voting and the remaining 40% through closed list proportional representation.

The election had a turnout of about 70%, with no major incidents of violence.Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, led by former president Mahinda Rajapaksa, secured the most seats and local authorities.

The last major round of local government elections was held in 2011 when elections were held in 322 of the then 335 local authorities. Elections to two other local authorities in Mullaitivu District were due but were repeatedly postponed due to alleged delays in resettling internally displaced persons following the end of the civil war in 2009. Elections to the remaining 11 local authorities were not due as they had their last election in 2008 or 2009. Since 2011 six new local authorities have been created (1 MC, 5 DC) taking the total number of local authorities to 341 (24 MC, 41 UC, 276 DC).

The normal term of a local authority is four years but the law allows the central government to extend this by a further year. The term of the 234 local authorities (3 MC, 30 UC, 201 DC) that had their election on 17 March 2011 was due to expire on 31 March 2015 but on 27 March 2015 their term was extended to 15 May 2015. These 234 local authorities were then dissolved and their administration placed under special commissioners appointed by the government. The term of the 65 local authorities (1 MC, 9 UC, 55 DC) that had their election on 23 July 2011 expired on 31 July 2015 after which their administration was placed under special commissioners. The term of the 23 local authorities (16 MC, 1 UC, 6 DC) that had their election on 8 October 2011 was due to expire on 15/31 October 2015 but in October 2015 their term was extended to 31 December 2015. This was subsequently extended to 30 June 2016. These 23 local authorities were then dissolved and their administration placed under special commissioners.

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