The United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by President Mahinda Rajapaksa has swept the board in the elections to the Central and North Western Provincial Councils held Saturday.

It has won with a convincing majority in the Central Province, winning in all the districts there, while it has a commanding lead in the North Western Province (Wayamba), where the final result ha been delayed to a re-poll in one of the electoral districts there.

Official poll results showed the UPFA gaining a clear victory in the Central Province obtaining 650,203 votes – 59.53% while Opposition United National Party (UNP) that came next polled 422,125 – 38.65%. The UNPF won 36 seats to the UNP’s 22 giving it a comfortable majority in the Central Provincial Council. It won all, but one (Mahanuwara) of the 13 electoral districts in the Kandy District, all four electoral districts in Matale District, while the UNP was able to obtain a majority in only one (Nuwara-Maskeliya) of four electoral districts in the central Nuwara Eliya District.

The results of the Central Province by district were – Mahanuwara District - UPFA 363,490 (59.41%) – 18 seats, UNP 237,827 (38.87) – 12 seats; Matale District UPFA 140,295 (69.48%) – 7 seats, UNP – 56,009 (27.74%) – 3 seats; and the Nuwara Eliya District – UPFA – 146, 418 (51.77%) = 9 seats, UNP -128, ,289 (45.36%) – 7 seats.

In the North Western Provincial Council election, the UPFA has won 24 seats to nine for the UNP and one for the JVP in the Kurunegala District having clear victories in all 14 electoral districts in the Kurunegala District, while it has won with large majorities in four of the five electoral districts of the Puttalam District that have been announced. In the Kurunegala District the UPFA polled 497,366 (70.13%) while the UNP got 193,548 (27.29%) and the JVP polled only 16,084 votes.

Announcement of the official result for the Puttalam District and the North Western Provincial Council has been delayed due to the annulment of the poll in a polling division of the Puttalam District, for which a fresh poll is to be held.

The results of the elections are seen as an endorsement of the policies of President Rajapaksa and the UPFA Government, particularly its handling of the military operations against terrorism, which has seen the separatist terrorist LTTE being brought to the verge of defeat in the North of Sri Lanka.

The success of the UPFA in the elections in the Central and North Western Provinces follow the success it has had in the past year in winning majorities in the first ever elections to the Eastern Provincial Council, which was held after the liberation of the Eastern Province from LTTE terror, and later in polls to the Provincial Councils in the North Central and Sabaragamuwa Provinces.

These elections that have been held in areas with varying geographical, economic and social conditions, have shown widespread support for President Rajapaksa as the national leader and for his policies particularly among the rural population that the largest in Sri Lanka as well as support that is well spread out among the Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim communities in all five the provinces that have gone to the polls.

Polls are due soon in the Western Province, where the Provincial Council has recently been dissolved, and which has a large urban population. Political analysts see this as an important test of how the urban sections respond to President Rajapaksa’s policies against terrorism as well the UPFA Governments ’ social and economic policies.

Nearly 3.4 million voters in the two provinces were eligible to vote in Saturday’s elections the two provincial councils for five year terms. About 1,370 candidates were in the fray for 56 seats in the Central Provincial Council while 1,209 candidates contested 50 seats in the North Western Provincial Council.