MPs pick ex-PM seen as close to ousted president Gotabaya Rajapaksa, a move likely to frustrate protesters
Sri Lanka’s prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, has been elected as president to replace ousted Gotabaya Rajapaksa, a result that is likely to provoke turmoil among protesters who have been calling for weeks for him to resign.
Wickremesinghe, who has been prime minister six times but never president, won an overwhelming victory in parliament on Wednesday morning, where MPs voted for the new president in an unprecedented secret ballot. The vote came after protesters forced former president Rajapaksa from office amid anger over a spiralling economic crisis.
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