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Sri Lanka’s new president has dissolved parliament to make way for a snap general election. <\/p>\n
Anura Kumara Dissanayake dissolved the 225-member parliament in which his left-leaning National People’s Power (NPP) alliance had just three seats. <\/p>\n
The election will take place on 14 November, almost a year ahead of schedule, according to a notification in the official government gazette. <\/p>\n
The president also selected his ally Harini Amarasuriya as prime minister on Tuesday, choosing a woman for the third time in the country’s history.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Dissanayake won the nation’s presidential election on Saturday.<\/p>\n
He had signalled he would dissolve parliament soon after being elected to seek a fresh mandate to pursue his policies. He previously said there was “no point continuing with a parliament that is not in line with what the people want”.<\/p>\n
The last general election in Sri Lanka, where MPs are elected for a five-year term, took place in August 2020. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Dissanayake, who has drawn increasing support in recent years for his anti-corruption and anti-poverty policies, won the country’s first election since its economy collapsed in 2022 sparking protests and forcing then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to flee<\/a> and resign. <\/p>\n It was a remarkable turnaround for a politician who won just 3% in the 2019 presidential election.<\/p>\n