Focus

    Poll results: JVP sees red

By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema

The JVP that emerged as the third force in the country’s political platform following the  2004 general election has seen a massive erosion in its vote base at the provincial polls.

The party polled just 56,384 (2.42%) votes at the Western Provincial Council (WPC) poll securing three seats in the council. The party contested the last WPC election in 2004 on the UPFA ticket and won 23 slots.

The JVP received a total of 26,738 votes (4.90%) in the North Central Province and managed to secure one slot in the council after having eight members in the previous council. In the Sabaragamuwa Province the party managed to poll 19,068 votes (2.23%) to return only two members to the council, which is a decline from the previous 10 members.

A senior JVP source told The Sunday Leader that they were confidant the current voting trend would see a change during a general or presidential election. “The JVP has performed well at the recent provincial council elections amidst many obstacles apart from the government’s campaign based on the military victories,” he said.

He added that although the party has recorded a decline in its vote base, it has managed to protect its individuality.

“The JVP does not need positions in councils or parliament to continue its journey. All other parties that contested with the government cannot sustain themselves for long. They will whither once they move out of the UPFA,” he said. 

A close look at the party’s performance at recent elections indicates heavy fluctuations in its vote base.

The JVP that started to record an increase in its vote base from the 1982 presidential election saw its peak at the 2001 general elections where it polled 815,353 votes (9.10%).

The party then recorded a drastic decline at the 2002 local government elections where it managed to poll only 424,760 votes. The JVP at the election won one local government body.

On its own

After forming the UPFA, the party contested the general election under that banner in 2004 till 2006 when it once again contested an election on its own.

At the 2006 local government election although the JVP managed to increase its number of votes from that received at the 2002 local government elections, it managed to win only one local government authority.

It is however interesting to look at the JVP’s performance at elections since it began contesting elections in 1977.

In 1977 the JVP for the first time fielded candidates at an election. The party fielded four candidates to contest from four electorates as independent candidates.

At the elections, Vijitha Ranaweera contested from Tangalle and polled 1,234 votes (3.09%), Robert Jayasekera from Hakmana polled 724 votes (1.74%), K.I.M. Ranatunga from Horowpathana polled 687 votes (2.76%) and K.H. Chandrapala from Anuradhapura West polled 797 votes (3.04%).

The party next contested the District Development Committee elections held in 1981 as an independent group and managed to get 13 members elected to the committees.

The JVP’s real entrance to mainstream politics was when the party’s founding leader Rohana Wijeweera contested the 1982 presidential election and received 273,428 votes (4.19%).

It was at the 1994 general election that the JVP managed to secure its first parliamentary seat from the Hambantota District.

Since the party’s then General Secretary Somawansa Amarasinghe was in exile, the party could not contest the election as the JVP and instead had to contest the election under the Progressive Front banner with the Flower Vase as its symbol. At the elections, the JVP managed to poll 90,078 votes to secure a parliamentary seat, which was filled by Nihal Galappatti.

Withdrew

Galappatti in the same year was nominated as the party’s presidential candidate. However  he withdrew from the election following PA candidate, Chandrika Kumaratunga’s promise to abolish the executive presidency.

Although Galappatti announced his decision to withdraw from the election, he still received 22,752 votes.

The JVP that contested the local government elections in 1997 managed to get 101 of its members elected to several authorities, but did not win any of the local government bodies.

In 1999, the party nominated Nandana Gunathileka as its presidential candidate. Gunathileka who contested as a common candidate representing the Left parties in the country polled 344,173 votes (4.08%).

At the provincial council elections held the same year, 1999, the JVP received 794,238 votes from seven provinces.

It was in 1999, that the JVP managed to stamp its mark as a serious contender at an island wide election. The JVP strengthened by the results of the 1999 provincial polls, then contested the 2000 general election.

Although the party’s number of votes saw a slight decline from the 1999 provincial polls, the party managed to secure 10 parliamentary seats. The JVP received 518,774 votes (6%) at the general election in 2000.

However, within a short span of one year, at the 2001 general election, the party managed to increase its vote base to 815,353 votes (9.10%). The JVP secured 15 seats in parliament at the 2001 general election.

The party was unable to hold on to its votes received at the 2001 general election and build on it and recorded a drop in its vote base in 2002. The party’s vote base dropped from 815,353 to 424,760 at the local government elections in 2002. However, the JVP won the Tissamaharama local government authority for the first time at the 2002 elections.

In 2004, the party together with the SLFP formed the UPFA and contested the general election securing 39 parliamentary seats.

Although the party returned 39 members to the legislature, the number of votes secured solely by the JVP was not determined as it contested in an alliance.

Until 2006, there was no clear indication of the JVP’s actual vote base. In 2006, after parting ways with the UPFA government they decided to contest the local government elections on its own.

The JVP that topped the UPFA list in a large number of districts at the 2004 general election suffered a major setback with their votes almost halved.

The JVP however polled more votes than they did at the 2002 local authority election and managed to win only the Tissamaharama local government authority.

The bottom line is that the JVP since its entrance to mainstream politics has experienced several lean periods from time to time, but has managed to successfully bounce back each time. It would indeed be interesting to see if the red comrades can make history repeat itself and be the third force it once was.