The United National Party, often abbreviated as UNP ( si, එක්සත් ජාතික පක්ෂය, translit=Eksath Jāthika Pakshaya, ta, ஐக்கிய தேசியக் கட்சி, translit=Aikkiya Tēciyak Kaṭci), is a
centre-right political party
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...
in
Sri Lanka. The UNP has served as the country's ruling party, or as part of its governing coalition, for 38 of the country's 74 years of independence, including the periods 19471956, 19651970, 19771994, 20012004 and 20152019. The party also controlled the
executive presidency
An executive president is the head of state who exercises authority over the governance of that state, and can be found in presidential, semi-presidential, and parliamentary systems.
They contrast with figurehead presidents, common in most parlia ...
from its formation in 1978 until 1994.
The UNP has been led by President
Ranil Wickremesinghe
Ranil Wickremesinghe ( si, රනිල් වික්රමසිංහ, ta, ரணில் விக்கிரமசிங்க; born 24 March 1949) is a Sri Lankan politician who is the current president of Sri Lanka since 21 July 2 ...
since 1994.
As of September 2021, the UNP is a member of the
International Democrat Union
The International Democrat Union (IDU) is an international alliance of centre-right political parties. Headquartered in Munich, Germany, the IDU consists of 84 full and associate members from 65 countries. It is chaired by Stephen Harper, ...
.
History
Formation (1946–1952)
The UNP was founded by
Don Stephen Senanayake in 1946 by amalgamating three right-leaning, pro-dominion parties from the majority
Sinhalese community and minority
Tamil and
Muslim communities.
Senanayake had earlier resigned from the
Ceylon National Congress
The Ceylon National Congress ( Sinhala: ලංකා ජාතික කොන්ග්රසය ''Lanka Jathika Kongrasaya'') (CNC) was a Nationalist political party which was formed in Ceylon on 11 December 1919. It was founded after national ...
due to its revised aim in achieving independence from the
British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts e ...
.
The UNP represented the business community and the landed gentry, though Senanayake appealed to landless people by adopting populist policies. His agricultural policies allowed many landless people to relocate under productive colonization schemes, which resulted in Sri Lankan agricultural production rising. Senanayake became popular enough to be called the "father of the nation".
Senanayake refused a knighthood, but maintained good relations with Britain and was a
Privy Counsellor
The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of ei ...
.
He launched major irrigation and hydro-power projects such as the Gal Oya project (which relocated over 250,000 people
),
Udawalawa tank, Senanayaka tank, and several other multipurpose projects. He also renovated historic sites in Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa and played a major role in the
Colombo plan.
During his tenure, free education commenced and the
University of Peradeniya opened.
However, his government proceeded to disenfranchise the plantation workers of
Indian descent, the Indian Tamils, using the
Ceylon Citizenship Act
The Ceylon Citizenship Act No. 18 of 1948 was a controversial law passed by the Ceylon Parliament which did not grant citizenship to Indian Tamils, who were 11% of the population.
Background
During the 19th and early 20th centuries the Britis ...
of 1948 and the Parliamentary Elections Amendment Act of 1949. These measures were intended primarily to electorally undermine the Left.
Dudley Senanayake era (1952–1953)
In July 1951, long-standing UNP stalwart
, a Buddhist nationalist leader known for his centre-left views, quit the UNP to found the
Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) as a balancing force between the UNP and Marxist parties. In March 1952, Prime Minister Senanayake died in a riding accident and was succeeded by his son
Dudley Senanayake
Dudley Shelton Senanayake ( Sinhala: ඩඩ්ලි ශෙල්ටන් සේනානායක: ta, டட்லி சேனநாயக்கா; 19 June 1911 – 13 April 1973), was a Sri Lankan statesman who served as Prime Min ...
.
During his tenure, Dudley Senanayake launched several projects to further develop the agricultural sector and was termed "Bath Dun Piya" (English: the father who offered free rice to the nation). To improve the agricultural sector, he created Bathalegoda Paddy research centre, Thalawakele Tea research centre and Lunuwila Coconut research centre.
He also founded
Moratuwa University, Ampara Higher Technology Institution, and many technical colleges.
During this period,
Bhikku University commenced and
Poya
Poya is the name given to the Lunar monthly Buddhist holiday of Uposatha in Sri Lanka, where it is a civil and bank holiday.
Full moon day is normally considered as the poya day in every month.
Poya
A Poya occurs every full moon.[ ...]
was declared a government-recognized holiday.
Kotelawala era (1953–1958)
The UNP attempted to reduce the rice ration, resulting in the
1953 Hartal (general strike and protest), which led to the resignation of Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake. He was succeeded by his cousin, Colonel
Sir John Kotelawala
General Sir John Lionel Kotelawala ( si, ශ්රිමත් ජෝන් ලයනල් කොතලාවල; 4 April 1897 – 2 October 1980) was a Sri Lankan statesman, who served as the 3rd Prime Minister of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) fro ...
, who launched several major power generation and infrastructure projects. These include: the Lakshapana hydropower project; Bambalapitiya, a housing project for the homeless; modernizing of the
Ratmalana Airport
Colombo International Airport, Ratmalana ( si, කොළඹ ජාත්යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළ, රත්මලාන, translit=Koḷam̆ba Jātyantara Guvantoṭupaḷa, Ratmalāna; ta, கொழும்பு ...
; construction of the Kelaniya Bridge; and the development of Buddhist religious sites.
There was growing disaffection with the UNP particularly because of its support of
minority religious groups – most notably
Catholics – to the consternation of the predominantly
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
Sinhalese. Bandaranaike was able to take advantage and lead the SLFP to victory in the 1956 elections, while the UNP returned only eight members to parliament. Kotelawala stepped down as party leader and went into self-imposed exile in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
.
Second Dudley Senanayake era (1958–1972)
Bandaranaike passed the controversial
Sinhala Only Act, which led to communal clashes in 1958. Dudley Senanayake retook party leadership, and the UNP held power for three months in
1960. The UNP entered a coalition with the
Mahajana Eksath Peramuna
The Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (People's United Front) is a political party in Sri Lanka. The party is currently led by Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, son of Philip Gunawardena, the founder of the party.
History
Under Philip Gunawardena ...
and the Tamil ethnic
Federal Party which took power in
1965 under Dudley Senanayake. The coalition lost in a
1970 landslide to the
United Front alliance of the SLFP with
Marxist Parties
Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialectical ...
. A bitter leadership battle in the UNP developed between the populist Dudley Senanayake and the more conservative
Junius Richard Jayewardene
Junius Richard Jayewardene ( si, ජුනියස් රිචඩ් ජයවර්ධන, ta, ஜூனியஸ் ரிச்சட் ஜயவர்தனா; 17 September 1906 – 1 November 1996), commonly abbreviated in Sri Lanka as ...
, a strong supporter of free-market and pro-
American policies. The latter was nicknamed as "Yankee Dickey".
During the tenure of Dudley Senanayake,
English education was made compulsory.
Jayawardene era (1972–1988)
After Dudley Senanayake's death in 1973, Jayewardene became the leader of the UNP and reorganized the party at the grassroots level.
The United Front faced general disaffection from its economic policies and its brutal crackdown against a 1971 Marxist–Leninist insurrection by the
Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). The UNP, which promised each person with an cereal ration, returned to power in 1977 with an unprecedented five-sixths majority in parliament.
Jayewardene was elected president by Parliament and, in 1978, introduced a new
constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princ ...
which transformed the presidency into an executive post with sweeping powers.
The UNP opened the economy and made sweeping policy changes.
Free-trade zone
A free-trade zone (FTZ) is a class of special economic zone. It is a geographic area where goods may be imported, stored, handled, manufactured, or reconfigured and re-exported under specific customs regulation and generally not subject to cus ...
s such as in
Katunayaka and
Biyagama
Biyagama ( si, බියගම, ta, பியகம) is a suburb in Gampaha District, situated in the Western Province of Sri Lanka. It is 12 miles from Colombo
Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும் ...
attracted foreign investment and generated employment. The government undertook massive development work to promote hydroelectricity and agriculture. Reservoirs were built at
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
,
Randenigala,
Rantambe and
Kotmale, while
Maduru Oya and
Lunugamwehera reservoirs were reconstructed. He awarded "Swarnabhoomi" land deeds to people and established administration centres such as Isurupaya and Sethsiripaya to create the new administrative capital in
Sri Jayawardanapua Kotte, where a new
Parliament Building was constructed.
In schools, the Mahapola scholarship programme was launched, free school books were provided, and information technology was introduced. Jayawardene's administration created the
University of Ruhuna and
Eastern University as well as the medical faculty of
Jaffna university.
Bandaranayake International Airport
Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) ( si, බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළ, translit=Bandāranāyaka Jātyantara Guvantoṭupaḷa; ta, பண்டாரநாயக்க � ...
was modernized and
Air Lanka
SriLankan Airlines (formerly known as Air Lanka) is the flag carrier of Sri Lanka and a member airline of the Oneworld airline alliance. It is currently the largest airline in Sri Lanka by number of aircraft and destinations and was launched i ...
was created. He also modernized the military and created the Police Special Task Force.
By 1987, the
Sri Lankan military had cornered the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in Jaffna and were confident of bringing an end to the
civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
. However, due to internal pressure,
airdropped supplies to the besieged LTTE.
Premadasa era (1988–1993)
Jayewardene retired in 1988 and was succeeded by
Ranasinghe Premadasa, a populist leader from the lower class known for his anti-Indian sentiment. After he was
elected as president in 1988, he launched the Million Houses Programme for the homeless and started the 'Village Re-Awakening Movement' (Gam Udawa) to develop rural areas across the country. Premadasa's people-oriented programs include the Janasaviya, the Garment Factories Programme, and decentralization of the administration to Divisional Secretariats. He also created the National Housing Development Authority, Urban Development Authority, Central Environmental Authority, Janasaviya Trust Fund, Housing Development Finance Corporation and the Institute for Construction Training and Development.
Despite these developments, many of his political enemies "disappeared" during his reign, most notably the journalist
Richard de Zoysa
Richard Manik de Zoysa (Tamil: இரிச்சர்ட் டி சோய்சா) ( Sinhala:රිචඩ් ද සොයිසා) (18 March 1958 – 18 February 1990) was a well-known Sri Lankan journalist, author, human rights acti ...
. In 1993, Premadasa was assassinated by LTTE suicide cadres at a
May Day
May Day is a European festival of ancient origins marking the beginning of summer, usually celebrated on 1 May, around halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Festivities may also be held the night before, known as May Eve. Tr ...
rally.
Wickremesinghe era
Opposition (1994–2001)
In the 1994 election, the
People's Alliance gained control of parliament after 17 years of unbroken UNP rule. While in opposition, many of UNP stalwarts were killed by an LTTE suicide terrorist attack including presidential candidate
Gamini Dissanayake
Dissanayake Mudiyanse Ralahamilage Lionel Gamini Dissanayake, PC (known as Gamini Dissanayake; si, ලයනල් ගාමිණි දිසානායක, ta, காமினி திஸாநாயக்க; 20 March 1942 – 24 Octob ...
. Party leadership was passed to Jayewardene's nephew,
Ranil Wickremesinghe
Ranil Wickremesinghe ( si, රනිල් වික්රමසිංහ, ta, ரணில் விக்கிரமசிங்க; born 24 March 1949) is a Sri Lankan politician who is the current president of Sri Lanka since 21 July 2 ...
, a relatively young politician with pro-western views and a penchant for neoliberal economic policies.
In government (2001–2004)
By 2001 the country was facing the worst economic downturn since independence, with rising inflation and a power crisis. GDP was shrinking by 2.5%. The SLFP government fell on a no-confidence motion by the opposition, which prompted President Kumaratunga to call for early elections. Wickremesinghe secured the support of former government notables, including former Kumaratunga confidants,
G. L. Peiris, and
S. B. Dissanayake, who would later become important members of the party. On a platform of peace with LTTE and economic resurgence, the UNP returned to power in the 2001 election, taking all but one district. Wickremesinghe became prime minister of a "co-habitation" government with President Kumaratunga.
Within two months into his premiership, Wickremesinghe signed a pivotal ceasefire agreement with the LTTE. The agreement was followed by intense peace negotiations towards a solution to the ethnic conflict. During
Eelam War III, which followed as the negotiations were not yet complete, the LTTE proceeded to seize territories that it had lost.
The UNP government maintained strict fiscal discipline and market-friendly policies, which led to economic recovery, large-scale investment, and rapid economic growth. The government created key economic institutions such as the Board of Investment, the Ministry for Small and Rural Enterprises, and the Information Communication Technology Agency. Economic growth continued to accelerate, reaching almost 6% at the end of 2003, while inflation was at an all-time low of under 2%. Many local and foreign experts believed that Sri Lanka could reach double-digit economic growth within a few years.
However, cease-fire breaches by the LTTE, including the constant stream of assassinations of military spies, emboldedend nationalistic and extremist factions such as the JVP and its cover organizations to organise protests. They tried to convince the public that Wickremesinghe was giving too much away to the LTTE. Hardline Sinhalese Buddhist organizations such as the Sinhala Urumaya (Sinhalese Heritage) criticized the government for this and for allegedly pandering to western
evangelical Christian
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...
organizations, endangering Buddhism. The Sinhala Urumaya later rename themselves as
Jathika Hela Urumaya
The Jathika Hela Urumaya ( si, ජාතික හෙළ උරුමය, ta, ஈழ மக்கள் கழகம், often approximated in English as National Heritage Party) is a nationalist political party in Sri Lanka. The JHU was launched ...
(National Sinhalese Heritage) and put forward Buddhist monks to contest elections.
In late 2003 the president took over the National Lotteries Board. The UNP blocked this move by surrounding the government press so that the gazette could not be printed. As a retaliatory move, the president then took over the ministries of Mass Communications, Defence, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, while Prime Minister Wickremesinghe was visiting
George W. Bush in Washington DC. Kumaratunga and her confidants launched a massive media attack on their nominal partners, branding Wickremesinghe as a traitor and accusing the UNP government of "selling" national heritage sites to foreigners.
Opposition (2004–2015)
Early in 2004, the SLFP and JVP formed the
United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA), marking the beginning of the end for the UNP government. In February 2004, within 24 hours of delivering a speech for national unity, Kumaratunga dissolved parliament.
In the subsequent
election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
on 2 April 2004, the UNP was defeated by the UPFA. Wickremesinghe remained as leader of the UNP.
In the
presidential election of 17 November 2005, Wickremesinghe, came second with 48.43% of the vote. It is widely believed that if not for the boycott of the polls in the North and parts of the East, allegedly due to LTTE intimidation, Wickramsinghe would have won, though he was unable to gain the trust of the bulk of the majority Sinhalese community.
In early 2007, 18 senior members of the UNP joined President
Mahinda Rajapaksa's ruling coalition, receiving ministerial positions. This resulted in a state of political unrest, as the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the President and the UNP leader in late 2006 was read as no longer valid. This incident, generally recorded in the press as
'crossovers', also resulted in a state where a number of senior officials expressed concern over the 'jumbo cabinet'. On 9 February 2007, the president sacked three ministers for their remarks against the new political configuration.
UNP and twelve other opposition parties in parliament signed an opposition alliance on 3 November 2009.
After winning the 30-year long war against LTTE in 2009, President Rajapaksa called for an early
presidential election in 2010. UNP and JVP backed
General Sarath Fonseka as presidential candidate. This was the first time UNP backed a non-UNP member for president. However, Rajapaksa won the election with 57.88% of the popular vote. In April, Rajapaksa called for a
general election and UPFA won a majority of 144 seats while UNF received 60 seats.
In government (2015–2019)
President Rajapaksa, seeking a third term, called for an early
election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has opera ...
in 2015. UNP and several other parties backed SLFP's general secretary and health minister,
Maithripala Sirisena
Maithripala Yapa Sirisena ( si, පල්ලෙවත්ත ගමරාළලාගේ මෛත්රීපාල යාපා සිරිසේන; ta, பல்லேவத்த கமராளலாகே மைத்திரி� ...
, as common candidate. Sirisena emerged victorious with 51.28% of the popular vote in an election which saw a record turnout of 81.52%. Sirisena was sworn in as executive president while Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as prime minister. Over 70% of the ministerial posts in the
Sirisena cabinet went to the UNP and Minister
Lakshman Kiriella
Lakshman Bandara Kiriella, MP (born 2 February 1948) is a Sri Lankan politician and lawyer. He is a Member of Parliament from the Kandy District, former Leader of the House of the parliament. Also he held office as Minister of Public Enterprise ...
was appointed the leader of the house. The new government presented a budget to parliament two weeks later, giving benefits including a pay hike and reduced prices on 13 goods. The National Medicine Regulatory Authority Bill was passed, providing for the establishment of a regulatory authority to be known as the National Medicines Regulatory Authority. The 19th Amendment to the Constitution was approved by the Cabinet at an emergency Cabinet meeting on 16 March 2015.
UNP won a majority of seats (106) in the 2015 general elections and Wickremesinghe was appointed prime minister. UNP signed a
memorandum of understanding with SLFP for a
national unity government
A national unity government, government of national unity (GNU), or national union government is a broad coalition government consisting of all parties (or all major parties) in the legislature, usually formed during a time of war or other nat ...
, and Wickremesinghe made cabinet appointments from both parties.
The unity government would last for at least 2 years, in order to address unresolved issues from the 30-year Sri Lanka Civil War.
Wickremesinghe asked parliament for permission to exceed the constitutional limitation of 30 cabinet ministers.
This motion was approved by the parliament with 143 in favour, 16 against and 63 absent.
The popularity of the government declined, and UNP suffered a defeat in the
2018 local authority elections. They were only able to secure 34 of 340 councils while
Mahinda Rajapaksa's proxy
Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) won 231 councils. UNP secured only 29.42% against the 40.47% of the SLPP and the 12.10% of the SLFP.
Split and total collapse in opposition (2019–2022)
In the
2019 presidential election, the UNP nominated
Sajith Premadasa
Sajith Premadasa, MP ( si, සජිත් ප්රේමදාස, ta, சஜித் பிரேமதாச; born 12 January 1967) is a Sri Lankan politician. He is the current Leader of the Opposition of Sri Lanka and Member of Par ...
as its candidate after much delay due to internal conflicts. Premadasa was defeated by
Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who gained 52.25% of the votes against 41.99% by Premadasa. Premadasa was chosen by the party to serve as opposition leader until fresh elections were called in April 2020.
The party had a major split in early 2020 when its working committee became divided over a new alliance that it had previously approved. Leadership of the alliance was given to its deputy leader, the popular
Sajith Premadasa
Sajith Premadasa, MP ( si, සජිත් ප්රේමදාස, ta, சஜித் பிரேமதாச; born 12 January 1967) is a Sri Lankan politician. He is the current Leader of the Opposition of Sri Lanka and Member of Par ...
. Over three-quarters of the parliamentary group refused to sign nominations from the party, instead making nominations under the
Samagi Jana Balawegaya
The Samagi Jana Balawegaya (, ta, ஐக்கிய மக்கள் சக்தி, "United People's Power") is a political alliance that is led by the opposition leader of Sri Lanka, Sajith Premadasa. The alliance was formed with the appr ...
(English: Peace People's Power, SJB) alliance. As a result, ninety-nine of the party's seniors were suspended from its membership. Party supporters moved to the new alliance, along with supporting minority parties.
After failed negotiations, the SJB and the UNP decided to contest the 2020 parliamentary elections separately. Delayed by the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, 2020 parliamentary elections resulted in a landslide victory of the SLPP, which gained 59.09% of the votes and secured a 145-seat parliamentary majority, while the SJB gained 23.90% votes and 54 seats. The UNP suffered its worst defeat, receiving only 2.15% of votes cast. For the first time, it almost failed to win a single seat in parliament, having only gained one
national list seat.
Following the party's defeat in the parliamentary elections, Wickremesinghe indicated on several occasions his willingness to step down as party leader after serving for more than 25 years. He declared that the party would wait with appointing the sole national seat until the new leader would be selected so that he or she could be represented in parliament. However, he failed to follow up on his original statements and Wickremesinghe continuously postponed the decision on the two positions. Ultimately, he remained party leader and also took the sole parliamentary seat for himself in June 2021.
Crisis government (2022–present)
Due to the worsening
economic crisis and widespread protests in 2022, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa resigned. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who wished to form a government of national unity, invited Wickremesinghe to once again assume the office of Prime Minister as a reconciliatory effort towards the opposition. The relevant parties represented in parliament, Samagi Jana Banawegaya and Tamil National Alliance, refused to take up portfolios in such a cabinet, however they offered conditional support to policies aimed at reviving the economy. Wickremesinghe became Prime Minister despite his party having only one seat in parliament, a first in Sri Lankan parliamentary history.
On 9 July 2022, protestors stormed and occupied the
presidential residence as economic conditions got worse. Wickremesinghe agreed to resign while President Gotabaya Rajapaksa agreed to resign on the 13th.
However, on the morning of 13 July, Rajapaksa fled the country, accompanied by his spouse and a personal security detail, to the
Maldives
Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...
. The Speaker of Parliament announced in the afternoon that President Rajapaksa appointed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as acting president in his absence. Protesters stormed the office of the Prime Minister demanding his resignation. The next day, Rajapaksa emailed a letter of resignation to the
Speaker of the Parliament.
On 15 July, the Speaker
Mahinda Yapa Abewardhana announced the official resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Ranil Wickremesinghe was officially sworn in as the acting president, and was later
elected Elected may refer to:
* "Elected" (song), by Alice Cooper, 1973
* ''Elected'' (EP), by Ayreon, 2008
*The Elected, an American indie rock band
See also
*Election
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population ...
by the
Parliament of Sri Lanka to complete the remainder of Rajapaksa's term.
E-membership
On 23 June 2016, the party launched its e-membership program. The party plans to increase membership by 20% with support from Google Play and Apple store online apps.
Electoral history
Presidential
Parliamentary
Leaders
The United National Party has had seven leaders since 1947.
Ranil Wickremesinghe
Ranil Wickremesinghe ( si, රනිල් වික්රමසිංහ, ta, ரணில் விக்கிரமசிங்க; born 24 March 1949) is a Sri Lankan politician who is the current president of Sri Lanka since 21 July 2 ...
has been the leader of the party since 1994.
See also
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General Secretary of the United National Party
The General Secretary of the United National Party is one of the highest positions in the -year old Sri Lankan party. The General Secretary holds the powers of calling working committee meetings of the party and singing nominations for the electi ...
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Politics of Sri Lanka
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Political parties in Sri Lanka
This article lists political parties in Sri Lanka.
Alliances
Parliamentary alliances
Other parliamentary alliances
Defunct/dormant alliances
Parties
Parliamentary Registered parties
Other registered parties
Unregistered parties ...
Notes
References
External links
UNP's official websiteUNP BlogUNP MPs officially call for Ranil's stepping downChallenging Ranil's Leadership
{{Authority control
1946 establishments in Ceylon
International Democrat Union member parties
Political parties established in 1946
Political parties in Sri Lanka