With half the results out in the Presidential election held yesterday, UPFA candidate, President Mahinda Rajapaksa is now surging ahead comfortably with nearly 60 percent of the votes polled. His nearest rival retired Gen Sarath Fonseka could muster only 39 percent of the votes.

The President is now marching forward with confidence towards a massive victory. He has taken the majority in Ambalangoda, the hometown of his opponent Mr Fonseka.

Mr Rajapaksa polled over 2.4 million votes to Mr Fonseka's 1.5 million votes with counting in nearly half the electorates completed.

As results go in favour of Mr Rajapaksa, sleepless supporters of the winning President flocked to streets to celebrate lighting crackers to display their tribute to a leader who liberated the nation from the grip of terrorism after 30 years.

Opposition Leader, Ranil Wickremasinghe, the leading supporter of Fonseka described yesterday's sixth presidential election as being free and fair.

A large voter turnout was witnessed as Election Observers and Monitors declared the poll was free and fair. The voter turnout was little over 70%.

While in some districts voting percentage was over 75 percent, it was around 60 to 65 percent in some other districts. This is the first national election in the country since the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in May.

President Rajapaksa called for presidential polls two years ahead of the end of his six-year term within eight months of the victory over terrorism.