The Election Commission (EC) has set the expenditure cap at Rs 109 per registered voter during Presidential Election 2024.
Consequently, a candidate can spend a maximum of Rs 1.86 billion on their campaign for the Presidential Election 2024. There are 17.1 million registered voters in Sri Lanka.
The Gazette notification to announce the expenditure cap for the Presidential Election was to be issued yesterday (19) night.
The political parties registered for the presidential election had suggested varying amounts, ranging from Rs 20 to Rs 300 per voter.
During the meeting with the Election Commission secretariat on 16 August, the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) stated that they plan to spend Rs 300 per voter, amounting to approximately Rs 5.13 billion, considering the total number of registered voters in the country. Both the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and incumbent President Ranil Wickremesinghe indicated they would each spend Rs 250 per voter, leading to an estimated expenditure of Rs 4.275 billion. Meanwhile, the National People’s Power (NPP), led by Anura Kumara Dissanayake, announced a campaign budget of Rs 200 per voter, which totals Rs 3.42 billion Presidential candidates Janaka Ratnayake and Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, however, proposed a more conservative spending limit of Rs 20 per voter, resulting in a budget of Rs 342 million.
These proposed figures were endorsed by the general secretaries of the respective parties, during the meeting with the Election Commission.
Janaka Rathnayake expressed concerns about the substantial sums of money being allocated by some candidates and called for greater transparency regarding the sources of these funds. He urged the Election Commission to ensure that candidates disclose their sponsors and provide audited reports of their party’s annual income, including tax payments on these funds. Rathnayake also suggested that a reasonable campaign budget should be capped at Rs 20 per voter and urged the Election Commission to enforce this limit for all candidates.
In an interview with a YouTube channel, Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe noted that the campaign financing Act was enacted during his tenure as Justice Minister. He supported the Rs 20 expenditure cap, which applies to local government elections and proposed applying the same cap to presidential elections at a recent meeting with the Election Commission. He argued that, given the absence of specific electorates for the presidential election, the cap should total Rs 342 million based on the 17.1 million registered voters.
The Regulation of Election Expenditure Act was passed in Parliament on 19 January 2023. The Act regulates the spending by candidates in all elections held under the Local Authorities Elections Ordinance (Chapter 262), the Provincial Councils Elections Act, No. 2 of 1988, the Parliamentary Elections Act, No. 1 of 1981, and the Presidential Elections Act, No. 15 of 1981.
According to the Act, after the nomination period ends, the Election Commission will set an amount of money in Sri Lankan rupees, with input from political parties, independent groups and candidates. This amount will be published in the Gazette and used to determine the spending limits for the election.
For the Presidential Election, the Election Commission will calculate the spending limit by multiplying the total number of registered voters in the electoral districts by the amount fixed for the election. This total should then be published in the Gazette.
(ceylontoday.lk)
