July 1960 Ceylonese parliamentary election facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
July 1960 Ceylonese parliamentary election

← March 1960 20 July 1960 1965 →
151 seats in the House of Representatives of Ceylon 76 seats were needed for a majority
First party Second party   Leader Sirimavo Bandaranaike Dudley Senanayake Party Sri Lanka Freedom Party United National Party Leader since 1960 1957 Leader's seat n/a Dedigama Last election 21.28%, 46 seats 29.89%, 50 seats Seats won 75 30 Seat change 29 20 Popular vote 1,022,171 1,144,166 Percentage 33.22% 37.19%
Prime Minister before election Dudley Senanayake United National Party Prime Minister-designate Sirimavo Bandaranaike Sri Lanka Freedom Party

Parliamentary elections were held in Ceylon in July 1960.

Background

The March 1960 election had left neither of Ceylon's two major parties with a majority, so another election was inevitable.

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party, which had been in disarray since the murder of its leader S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike the previous year, settled on his widow, Sirimavo, as its new leader. She pledged to continue her husband's policies, notably the Sinhala Only Act, and to proceed with repatriation of the estate Tamils to India. However, she promised to reach a compromise with the Federal Party.

The United National Party, led by Dudley Senanayake, refused to compromise with the Federal Party. It also differed with the SLFP over economic policy. The SLFP called for a socialist program of nationalization of both private enterprises and religious schools; the UNP preferred to leave both in private hands.

Results

The SLFP obtained a bare majority, despite getting a lower share of the popular vote than the UNP, and Mrs. Bandaranaike became prime minister.