Mahinda Rajapaksa concedes Lanka election defeat

August 18, 2015 08:30

Sri Lanka's former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa has conceded defeat in parliamentary elections after a close fought comeback attempt just months after he was toppled as president.

"My dream of becoming prime minister has faded away," Rajapaksa told Agence France Presse. "I am conceding. We have lost a good fight."

Rajapaksa accepted that his United People's Freedom Alliance had lost even before Elections Chief Mahinda Deshapriya could announce the final results.

"We have won eight districts and the UNP (ruling United National Party) has 11 (out of a total of 22)," Rajapaksa said. "This means we have lost. It was a difficult fight."

Official figures showed the same breakdown of results, although final tallies had not yet been officially declared.

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