Election Commission withdraws SLFP recognition

Saturday, 7 November 2026 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The Election Commission has told the warring factions of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party that the party can no longer be treated as a formally recognised political party, 75 years after S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike founded it as an alternative to the United National Party.

The Commission has directed both sides to submit a fresh application for registration and to satisfy the criteria, foremost among them the holding of a proper party election.

Recognition is the gate to contesting under a party’s name and symbol, to nominating candidates and to the state entitlements that follow, including broadcast time and National List seats. The SLFP now holds none of these until it re-registers.

The party dominated Sri Lankan politics for half a century. Bandaranaike, its founder, was Prime Minister from 1956 until his assassination in 1959. His widow Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the world’s first woman Prime Minister in 1960 and held the office three times. Their daughter Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga served as President from 1994 to 2005, Mahinda Rajapaksa from 2005 to 2015 and Maithripala Sirisena from 2015 to 2019.