Colombo: The voter turnout in Sri Lanka's presidential elections hit 70 percent by 2 p.m. local time on Saturday, election officials said.
According to local officials on the ground, most districts in the island nation had recorded at least a 65-70 percent turnout in the first seven hours after the voting opened at 7 a.m. local time.
The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence said there were a total of 139 incidents of election violations reported across the country till afternoon. A majority of the violations were illegal campaigning and voter intimidation.
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The Elections Commission said the voting will end at 5 p.m. and urged political parties to ensure a free and fair poll.
35 candidates are in the fray for presidential elections and the results are expected to be announced by Monday.
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