Ranil Wickremesinghe, the current President of Sri Lanka, might face off against his own colleague, Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, in the upcoming presidential elections later this year. Rajapakshe, who serves as the Minister of Justice, could be the candidate from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), as announced by former President Maithripala Sirisena, who heads the SLFP.
Rajapakshe, 65, is seen as a strong contender for the SLFP candidacy. He hails from the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), a party that split from the United People's Freedom Alliance led by Mahinda Rajapaksa. While some factions of the SLPP support Wickremesinghe, others back the main opposition, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), led by Sajith Premadasa.
The SLPP loyalists to Rajapaksa are unlikely to nominate a candidate due to internal struggles following mass protests in 2022, which blamed the Rajapaksa family for Sri Lanka's economic crisis. Wickremesinghe, yet to declare his candidacy, is relying on cross-party support to implement economic reforms aimed at addressing the country's financial woes.
Meanwhile, Premadasa and Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) have already announced their candidacy. However, the SLFP, under Sirisena's leadership, is facing internal conflicts. Legal battles between factions led by Sirisena and former President Chandrika Kumaratunga are ongoing for control of the party, with both leaders restrained by court orders.
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