8TH LEAD

ITAK wins Trincomalee UC, PS, Thirukkovil PS, Alaiyadivembu PS

[TamilNet, Thursday, 30 March 2006, 20:24 GMT]
Ilankai Thamil Arasu Kadchchi (ITAK), the Tamil National Alliance party contesting in the local authorities elections, has won all the 9 seats in Thirukkovil and Alaiadivembu Pradeshiya Sabahs and won Karaithivu with 4 seats in Amparai district. The ITAK also won after a long time, both the Trincomalee Urban Council with 10 seats, and Trincomalee Town & Gravets PS with 6 seats. UPFA got 2 seats and UNP 1 seat in Trinco Town & Gravets PS. In the local elections results released at 2 p.m. Friday, the ruling UPFA alliance has won 116 PSs, 7 Municipal Councils (MCs) and 12 Urban Councils (UCs). The JVP has captured only Tissamaharagama, and JHU has only secured a few seats.

Ceylon Democratic Unity Alliance (CDUA) has won Thalawakelle-Lindula PS in the Hill Country, the first time a Tamil party has won without an allliance with a major Sinhala party.

UNP has captured Dehiwela-Mt Lavania Municipal Council, but lost the Kotte Municipal Council where the Sri Lanka Parliament is located to the UPFA.

UNP also captured the Nuware Eliya Municipal Council beating the alliance formed by UPFA, Thondaman's Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), and Chandrasekaran's Upcountry Peoples Front (UPF).

Center for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) reported that there were 130 violence incidents recorded and majority of the incidents occured in Chilaw and Nawalapitiya.

Polling turnout was less than 60% in the local elections in about 8829 centers to elect 3624 members to 266 local government authorities comprising 12 municipal councils (MC), 34 urban councils (UC) and 220 pradesiya sabahs (PS)

A total 11,037,763 voters were eligible to cast their franchise to elect their members from about 25,523 candidates fielded by political parties and independent groups.

In the NorthEast, elections to forty five local government authorities in the six districts of Jaffna, Mullaithivu, Killinochchi, Mannar, Vavuniya and Batticaloa have been postponed by the Sri Lankan Commissioner of Elections till September 30.