1965 Ceylonese parliamentary election

General elections were held in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in March 1965.

6th Ceylonese parliamentary election

22 March 1965
151 seats to the House of Representatives of Ceylon 76 seats were needed for a majority
Leader Dudley Senanayake Sirimavo Bandaranaike Party United National Party Sri Lanka Freedom Party Leader since 1957 1960 Leader's seat Dedigama Attanagalla Last election 30 Seats, 37.19% 75 Seats, 33.22% Seats won 66 41 Seat change 36 34 Popular vote 1,590,929 1,221,437 Percentage 39.31% 30.18%
Prime Minister before election Sirimavo Bandaranaike Sri Lanka Freedom Party Prime Minister-designate Dudley Senanayake United National Party

Background

The SLFP government of Sirimavo Bandaranaike lost its majority in December 1964 when some MPs deserted it over the nationalization of Lakehouse Newspapers.

Bandaranaike's program of extensive nationalization had alarmed many of the island's business interests, which rallied to the United National Party. The economy had been stagnant, and rationing had been imposed in the face of persistent food shortages.

The UNP promised to form a National Front government to oppose the SLFP and its Marxist allies. UNP leader Dudley Senanayake promised cabinet posts both to the small Sinhala nationalist parties and the Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (Federal Party).

Results

The UNP did not obtain a majority, but was able to govern as a National Front with the ITAK's support.

Summary of the 1965 Ceylonese parliamentary election[1]

Party		Candidates	Votes	%	Seats
	United National Party	116	1,590,929	39.31%	66
	Sri Lanka Freedom Party	101	1,221,437	30.18%	41
	Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi	20	217,914	5.38%	14
	Lanka Sama Samaja Party	25	302,095	7.47%	10
	Sri Lanka Freedom Socialist Party	32	130,429	3.22%	5
	Communist Party of Ceylon	9	109,754	2.71%	4
	All Ceylon Tamil Congress	15	98,746	2.44%	3
	Mahajana Eksath Peramuna	61	96,665	2.39%	1
	National Liberation Front	10	18,791	0.46%	1
	Others	106	259,960	6.42%	6
Valid Votes		495	4,046,720	100.00%	151
Rejected Votes
Total Votes Polled
Total Electors Polled[lower-alpha 1]			3,821,918
Registered Electors			4,710,887
Turnout[lower-alpha 2]			81.13%

Notes

1. Total electors polled is less than total votes polled due to multiple-member seats where electors can cast more than one vote.
2. Actual turnout was slightly higher due to J. R. Jayewardene (UNP) and Bernard Soysa (LSSP) being elected from Colombo South Electoral District without a contest.

References

1. "Table 36 Parliament Election (1965)". Sri Lanka Statistics. 10 February 2009.

• "Result of Parliamentary General Election 1965" (PDF). Department of Elections, Sri Lanka. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-07-13.
• "1965 General Election Results". LankaNewspapers.com. Archived from the original on 2012-03-10.
• "Table 36 Parliament Election (1965)". Sri Lanka Statistics. 10 February 2009.
• Rajasingham, K. T. (15 December 2001). "Chapter 19: Anguish and pain". Sri Lanka: The Untold Story. Asia Times.
• Rajasingham, K. T. (22 December 2001). "Chapter 20: Tamil leadership lacks perspicuity". Sri Lanka: The Untold Story. Asia Times.