Presidential Election voting period extended by an hour

Due to the length of the ballot paper, the Election Commission has decided to grant an additional hour of time to cast votes in the upcoming Presidential Election.

The decision to grant extra time was reached during yesterday’s meeting, held at the Election Commission under the patronage of the Commission Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya, with the representatives of the contesting parties and candidates, to enlighten them about the measure.

Accordingly, the people can cast their vote from 7.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. on 16 November, the Election Commission says.

The Elections Commission will issue the relevant Gazette notification announcing the change in polling time soon. Speaking to media, JVP representative and Parliamentarian Bimal Ratnayake said the Election Commission has taken the decision to extend the voting time due to complexities with the ballot paper.

The Elections Commission states that 35 candidates will contest the Presidential Election, and the ballot paper will be 26 inches long. They say that the time taken to cast their votes will also increase accordingly.

Representatives of the parties said the Election Commission's decision to extend the voting period by one hour is a timely decision, in order to give every voter the opportunity to cast their votes.