COLOMBO, Nov 17 (NNN-SLNEWS) – Sri Lanka’s ruling party presidential candidate, Sajith Premadasa, on Sunday (today) conceded defeat to his opponent, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in a presidential election which concluded on Saturday.
In a statement, Premadasa congratulated Rajapaksa for his victory at the polls, and said, he would be stepping down as the deputy leader of the United National Party, which is the largest party in the ruling United National Front government.
“At the conclusion of a hard fought and spirited election campaign, it is my privilege to honour the decision of the people and congratulate Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa on his election, as the seventh President of Sri Lanka,” Premadasa said in a statement.
“I express my heartfelt gratitude to all of our citizens who voted for me, in all corners of the island (country),” he added.
Premadasa said, the polls was the most peaceful in history and appealed to Rajapaksa, as the new president, to strengthen and protect the democratic institutions and values, that enabled Rajapaksa’s success as Sri Lanka’s 7th president.
By late Sunday morning, Rajapaksa had already won 50 percent of the total votes, with his party, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) predicting his win at 53 percent, according to local media.
The Sri Lanka Elections Commission said, it will announce the winner late Sunday afternoon, and the new president is likely to be sworn-in early this week.– NNN-SLNEWS