The Cabinet of Ministers has granted conditional approval, pending adoption at the next meeting, to introduce provisions allowing the recall of nominations for Local Government (LG) Elections.
During a Cabinet press conference held today (03), Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Bandula Gunawardena stated that over 900,000 voters on the updated 2024 voters’ list are at risk of losing their right to vote and stand for candidacy due to the indefinite postponement of the 2023 LG Election.
He emphasized that, under Article 4 of the Constitution, all citizens above 18 years of age have the right to vote. However, those included in the 2024 voters’ list are being deprived of this right in an election where nominations were concluded in January 2023.
Additionally, the Cabinet Spokesman noted that a provision for 25% youth representation in nominations for local government bodies, as mandated by the Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act No. 30 of 2023, was also overlooked because the relevant nominations were called in 2023.
To address these issues, it was decided to direct the legal draftsman to prepare a Local Authorities Elections (Special Provisions) Bill. This Bill, prepared in consultation with the Election Commission, would empower the election regulatory body to recall the nominations and conduct the election based on the updated 2024 voters’ list.
The joint proposal by the Prime Minister, as Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils & Local Government, and the Minister of Justice, has been approved by the Cabinet, subject to adoption at the next meeting.
