COLOMBO: Sri Lanka voted for its next president on Saturday in an effective referendum on an unpopular International Monetary Fund austerity plan enacted after the island nation's unprecedented financial crisis. Turnout was at nearly 70 per cent an hour before polling stations closed at 4:00 pm, an election commission official said, citing provisional figures.
Counting began on Saturday evening and the result is expected on Sunday, but an official outcome could be delayed if the contest is close. Schools were closed on Friday to be converted into polling stations, which were staffed by more than 200,000 public servants deployed to conduct the vote. — AFP
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