Sri Lanka Preference Voting reform

  The Issue Laws should be explicit and unambiguous. However, the Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the Presidential Elections Act (No. 15 of 1981) do not fully meet these criteria. This article exposes a major flaw in both the Constitution and the Act related to the preference voting system in presidential elections. Presently, preference votes are disregarded when a candidate receives more than 50% of the valid votes, a common occurrence since the enactment of the Act. However, given the significant changes in Sri Lanka's political landscape over the past three years, compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic and economic challenges, it is increasingly improbable for any candidate to secure such a majority. This situation highlights a serious concern: if preference votes come into play because no candidate achieves the 50% threshold, the final winner may not truly reflect the majority's will. This flaw emphasizes the urgent need to metic