Voting for the Presidential poll began at 7 a.m. and will end at 4 p.m. Elections Commissioner requests public to go to the polling stations with a valid identity card and cast their vote early.

All together 19 candidates are contesting at today’s election, including incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa from the UPFA and former Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena from the New Democratic Front.

Some 15,044,490 voters will cast their votes at 12,314 polling stations in the 22 administrative districts. According to the Government Information Department, ballot boxes were sent to respective polling stations from main counting centres countrywide yesterday under heavy security.
 
Election Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya said that there were 303 postal vote counting centres and 1,109 main counting centres set up in 44 places countrywide.
 
More than 70,000 policemen would be on duty for the Presidential Election, the Polls Chief said, adding that the army would be deployed if necessary and security had been tightened in several areas where violent incidents had been reported.
 
Local election monitors including the People’s Action for Free and Fair Election (PAFFREL), Campaign for Free and Fair Election (CaFEE) and Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) and foreign observers, including Commonwealth Election Monitors will observe today’s election.
 
The counting of vote would commence at 6.00 p.m. today and it is expected to release first postal voting result after 10 p.m.