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National People's Power

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National People's Power
ජාතික ජන බලවේගය
தேசிய மக்கள் சக்தி
AbbreviationNPP
LeaderAnura Kumara Dissanayake
General SecretaryNihal Abeysinghe
FounderAnura Kumara Dissanayake
Founded13 July 2019 (5 years ago) (2019-07-13)[1]
Headquarters464/20 Pannipitiya Road, Pelawatta, Battaramulla, Sri Lanka[2]
Youth wingNPP Youth[a]
Women's wingProgressive Women's Collective
IdeologyMajority:
Democratic socialism[3][4][5]
Left-wing populism[6][7][8]
Factions:
Progressivism
Pragmatism[9]
Reformism
Political positionCentre-left[10] to left-wing
Colors  Pink
SloganLet The Real People Win
Parliament of Sri Lanka
159 / 225
Provincial Councils
15 / 455
Local Governments
15 / 30
Election symbol
Compass
Website
npp.lk
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The National People's Power (NPP) or Jathika Jana Balawegaya (JJB) is a centre-left[11] to left-wing political party in Sri Lanka. It was formed as a coalition of left-wing and progressive parties that aimed to present an alternative to the existing political establishment.[12] The NPP emerged as a response to the perceived failures of traditional parties in the Sri Lankan political system. It is the current ruling party of Sri Lanka, having won the 2024 presidential and parliamentary elections, and is currently the largest party in the Parliament of Sri Lanka. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is the current leader of the party and Nihal Abeysinghe is the general secretary.[13][14]

Established in 2019,[1][15] the NPP consists of 21 diverse groups, including political parties and other organisations.[16] It contests in elections under the compass symbol. Considered an electorally weak third-party before the 2024 presidential election, it briefly formed a minority government under president Anura Kumara Dissanayake following his election. In the subsequent parliamentary elections, the NPP became the largest party in the parliament for the first time with 159 seats, winning a supermajority.

History

[edit]

The NPP was formed by the members of the leftist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna and over 20 other diverse groups, including political parties, worker unions, women's rights groups and youth organizations including members of ethnic minority communities.[citation needed]

Opposition (2019–2024)

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In the 2020 parliamentary elections, the SLPP achieved a landslide victory as the ruling party, while the Samagi Jana Balawegaya became the main opposition party. The NPP only secured 3 seats and remained a third party. Dissanayake later said in a speech that he was not satisfied with the SLPP's victory and the NPP's defeat. When the 20th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka was announced, the NPP launched a protest against it.[17][18]

In government (2024–present)

[edit]
Main article: 2024 Sri Lankan presidential election

The NPP saw a surge in popular support during the 2022 Sri Lankan protests, amid dissatisfaction with the incumbent political establishment and the economic crisis. In the first vote count of the 2024 presidential election, NPP presidential candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake won a plurality of the vote, with 42.31%.[19] Once the second round of vote counting concluded, Dissanayake was declared the winner and elected president, securing 55.89% of the vote.[20] The following day, Dissanayake formed an interim 3-member NPP government.[21]

Main article: 2024 Sri Lankan parliamentary election

Shortly after his inauguration, President Dissanayake dissolved parliament and called for snap parliamentary elections, fulfilling one of his campaign pledges.[22] In the elections, which were held on 14 November 2024, the NPP won a supermajority, securing 159 seats in the 225-member Parliament of Sri Lanka. The NPP won every electoral district except for Batticaloa.[23]

The NPP's majority was the second-largest majority in the country's parliamentary history, and the first election since 1977 where a single party managed to achieve a supermajority. The NPP secured 6,863,186 votes, the highest ever obtained by a single political party in a general election, surpassing the 6,853,690 votes won by the SLPFA in 2020. The NPP also won a record breaking 61.56% of the total vote, overtaking the previous record of 60.33% won by the UPFA in 2010. The NPP won the most seats in the Jaffna District, thus making it the first non-Tamil political party to win this district.[24] Altogether, the NPP won 21 out of 22 electoral districts, and 152 constituencies.[25]

Vijitha Hearath, contesting from Gampaha District, won 716,715 preferential votes, the highest ever recorded by a candidate in Sri Lanka. This surpassed previous records set by Ranil Wickremesinghe in 2015 (500,566 votes), Mahinda Rajapaksa in 2020 (527,364 votes), and Harini Amarasuriya earlier in the election with 655,289 votes from the Colombo District.[26] The election also witnessed a milestone in women's representation, with a record 21 female MPs elected, the highest in Sri Lanka's parliamentary history. Among them, 19 represented the NPP.[27]

Ideology

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The National People's Power is ideologically left-wing populist[28] and working-class centred. The NPP is led by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, the main communist party of Sri Lanka.[29] The NPP promotes a unique Sri Lankan economic model based on socialist principles and considers both neoliberalism and 'classical socialism' to be failures.[30] The NPP claims to oppose excessive privatization[31] and supports the state maintaining a role in energy, financial markets, and sectors directly related to national security while limiting involvement in profit-driven businesses.[32]

Members

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The NPP is composed of 21 groups, including political parties, youth organizations, women's groups, trade unions, and civil society organizations.[16]

  • Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
  • Aluth Parapura
  • Ethera Api
  • Public Servants for Public Service
  • National Bhikkhu Front
  • National Trade Union Centre
  • Sri Lanka Communist Party (Alternative Group)
  • Doctors for Social Justice
  • Samabhimani Collective
  • United Left Power
  • Inter Company Employees' Union
  • 71 Sahodrathwa Sansadaya
  • Aluth Piyapath
  • Mass Guiding Artists
  • Janodanaya
  • National Intellectuals Organization
  • Dabindu Collective
  • University Teachers for Social Justice
  • Progressive Women's Collective
  • Husmata Husmak
  • All Ceylon Estate Workers' Union

Leadership

[edit]

As of 5 October 2024, the current office bearers of the NPP are as shown below.[33]

Position Name
Party Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake
General Secretary Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe
Treasurer Eranga Gunasekara
Deputy Secretary Dr. Harini Amarasuriya
Deputy Secretary Lal Wijenayake

Leaders

[edit]
No. Leader
(birth–death) 		Electoral District Took office Left office Tenure General Secretary (term)
1 Anura Kumara Dissanayake
(b. 1968) 		Colombo 13 July 2019 Incumbent 5 years, 168 days[b]
Nihal Abeysinghe 2024–present

Electoral history

[edit]

Presidential

[edit]
Election Candidate First round Second round Result Ref
Votes % Votes %
2019 Anura Kumara Dissanayake 418,553 3.16% — Lost
2022 3 (E.V) 1.37% — Lost
2024 5,634,915 42.31% 5,740,179 55.89% Won [34]
NPP presidents

As of 2024, there have been a total of 1 National People's Power presidents.

# President
(birth–death) 		Home province Took office Left office Tenure Prime ministers (term)
10 Anura Kumara Dissanayake
(b. 1968) 		Western 23 September 2024 Incumbent 96 days[c]
Amarasuriya 2024–present

Parliamentary

[edit]
Parliament of Sri Lanka
Election Leader Votes Seats Result Ref
No. % No. +/– %
2015 Anura Kumara Dissanayake 543,944 4.87%
6 / 225
 New New Opposition
2020 445,958 3.84%
3 / 225
 Decrease 3 1.33% Opposition [35]
2024 6,863,186 61.56%
159 / 225
 Increase 156 70.67% Government [36]
NPP prime ministers

As of 2024, there have been a total of 1 National People's Power prime ministers.

No. Prime Minister
(birth–death) 		Electoral District Took office Left office Tenure President (term)
1 Harini Amarasuriya
(b. 1970) 		Colombo[d] 24 September 2024 Incumbent 95 days[e]
Dissanayake 2024–present

Local Authorities

[edit]
Election Leader Votes Councillors Local Authorities Ref
No. % No. +/–
2018 Anura Kumara Dissanayake 710,932 5.75%
434 / 8,327
 New
0 / 340
2019 (Elpitiya) 2,435 5.80%
2 / 30
 New
0 / 1
2024 (Elpitiya) 17,295 47.64%
15 / 30
 Increase 13
1 / 1
 [37]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Section of the Socialist Students Union
  2. ^ As of 28 December 2024
  3. ^ As of 28 December 2024
  4. ^ First entered from the National list
  5. ^ As of 28 December 2024

References

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  1. ^ a b "National People's Power launched". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  2. ^ "Contact". www.jvpsrilanka.com. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
  3. ^ ""Did Sri Lanka Swap Austerity Capitalism for "Marxism"?" – Foreign Policy in Focus".
  4. ^ ""JVP-led NPP believes in a unique Sri Lankan economic model based on socialist principles" -Nalinda Jayatissa (Former MP) – Opinion | Daily Mirror".
  5. ^ ""We'll contest elections under a new symbol" Anura Kumara Dissanayake – Hard talk | Daily Mirror".
  6. ^ "Sri Lankan outsider leftist Dissanayake wins presidential election".
  7. ^ "Breaking the Two-Party Hold". www.dailynews.lk.
  8. ^ "Sri Lanka Leftist Candidate Gains Ground with Anti-Corruption Push". 29 August 2024.
  9. ^ "'Sri Lanka's Dissanayake Is a Powerful, Popular President but a Pragmatist Not a Marxist'". www.thewire.in.
  10. ^ "'Sri Lanka's Parliamentary Election: The NPP Wins Historic Super Majority'". www.isas.nus.edu.sg.
  11. ^ "'Sri Lanka's Parliamentary Election: The NPP Wins Historic Super Majority'". www.isas.nus.edu.sg.
  12. ^ "The NPP Factor: Rise Of Left-Wing Populism In Sri Lanka". Colombo Telegraph. 16 March 2023. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
  13. ^ Anura Named the NPP. Ada Derana.[permanent dead link‍]
  14. ^ "Anura Kumara named Presidential candidate of National People's Power". Newsfirst. 18 August 2019.
  15. ^ "JVP to continue politics under NPP". Sri Lanka: The Morning. 17 August 2020.
  16. ^ a b "Who we are". www.npp.lk. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  17. ^ "Proposed New 20th Amendment will take Sri Lanka back to the Stone Age – NPP". 7 September 2020.
  18. ^ "NPP dissatisfied with the general election results: Anura Kumara". dailynews.lk.
  19. ^ "Election Commission". elections.gov.lk.
  20. ^ "Live Sri Lanka Presidential Election Results 2024: Real-Time Results". results.elections.gov.lk. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  21. ^ "New Cabinet appointed – Breaking News | Daily Mirror". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  22. ^ Mallawarachi, Bharatha (25 September 2024). "Sri Lanka's new president calls a parliamentary election for November to consolidate his mandate". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 25 September 2024. Retrieved 25 September 2024.
  23. ^ Srinivasan, Meera (16 November 2024). "Sri Lanka parliamentary election: How the NPP won over country's ethnic minorities". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
  24. ^ "Sri Lanka President's NPP single largest party in Jaffna". EconomyNext. 15 November 2024. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  25. ^ "Final results: NPP secures 159 seats". Times Online. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  26. ^ "Minister Vijitha Herath sets new Sri Lanka Voting record". Newswire. 15 November 2024. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  27. ^ "List of candidates and preferential votes in Sri Lanka 2024 election". EconomyNext. 15 November 2024. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  28. ^ Perera, Dayan Jayatilleka (12 June 2024). "The NPP Factor: Rise of Left-Wing Populism in Sri Lanka". Colombo Telegraph. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  29. ^ "National People's Power to launch its manifesto on 26th".
  30. ^ ""JVP-led NPP believes in a unique Sri Lankan economic model based on socialist principles" -Nalinda Jayatissa (former MP)". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  31. ^ "AKD outlines industrial policy of the NPP/JVP". Latest in the News Sphere | The Morning. 19 September 2022. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  32. ^ "AKD assures business community of investment security under NPP Govt. | Daily FT". www.ft.lk. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  33. ^ "Information of Recognized Political Parties – NPP" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
  34. ^ "Presidential Election Results – 2024". Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 22 September 2024. Archived from the original on 26 October 2024. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
  35. ^ "Parliament Election 2020 – Votes, Seats and National List Seats by Party – All Island" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 7 August 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 26 July 2024. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  36. ^ "Sri Lanka parliamentary poll: Ruling NPP heading for absolute majority". The Hindu.
  37. ^ "Local Authorities Elections – 2024/10/26 – Final Results of the Council" (PDF). Election Commission of Sri Lanka. 26 October 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 October 2024. Retrieved 29 October 2024.
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