Who is Anura Dissanayake, the firebrand Marxist poised to be Sri Lanka’s new President?

The win has marked not only a personal triumph for the 55-year-old leader but is also be a watershed moment for his Leftist party, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). Once seen as a radical fringe group, the JVP lost hundreds of its armed rebels to the Sri Lankan army during the brutal uprisings of the 1980s. The victory has signalled a dramatic transformation for the party, from its militant past to a legitimate force in national politics.

Born in Galewela, a small village in Central Province, on November 24, 1968, Dissanayake moved to Kekirawa at the age of four, where his upbringing would lay the groundwork for his future political consciousness.

His education began at Gamini Vidyalaya in Dambuththagama, and he later attended Dambuththagama Central College, excelling in studies. He became the first student from his school to qualify for university.

In 1992, Dissanayake enrolled at the University of Kelaniya, near Colombo, pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. It was here that he found a platform for his growing political ambitions, engaging in intense political activism. By the time he graduated in 1995, his future in Sri Lankan politics was clear. Soon he became focused on dismantling the political establishment that had ruled Sri Lanka since its independence.

In 1997, Dissanayake took his first significant steps into national politics when he was appointed national organiser of the Socialist Youth Organization, the youth wing of the JVP.

The JVP, which had a legacy of violent uprisings in the 1970s and 1980s, was still recovering from the scars of those conflicts.

Anura was soon seen as a transformative figure, capable of helping the party shed its radical past. A year later, in 1998, he was inducted into the JVP Central Committee and then into its Political Committee, cementing his role as a major player in the party.

His first test in electoral politics came in the 1998 Central Provincial Council elections, where he contested as the Chief Ministerial candidate. Although the JVP did not win the council, the campaign allowed him to establish his credentials and build a following among voters. Two years later, Dissanayake was elected to the national Parliament, marking his formal entry into the highest levels of Sri Lankan politics.

It was in 2004 that Dissanayake rose to prominence, when he contested the parliamentary elections from Kurunegala district and was re-elected with a significant number of preferential votes. As part of a coalition government, he served as Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands, and Irrigation, representing the JVP in an alliance with the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP). His tenure as a minister helped him cultivate a reputation as a competent administrator. This tenure also put him at the centre of political debates on agrarian reforms and rural development.

Dissanayake’s leadership capabilities were formally recognised when he was appointed head of the JVP Parliamentary Group in 2008, and two years later, he was re-elected to Parliament, despite the JVP experiencing electoral setbacks.

It was clear by this time that his leadership style was distinct — he combined hardline Marxist principles with pragmatic reformism, attracting a new generation of voters disillusioned by the status quo.

In January 2014, Dissanayake ascended to the JVP leadership, replacing Somawansa Amarasinghe. This transition marked a generational shift within the party. Under his leadership, the JVP underwent a rebranding effort, shifting away from its past of insurrections and armed rebellions and moving toward a platform of anti-corruption, social justice, and democratic socialism.

His leadership led to a surge in the JVP’s voter base, particularly among younger Sri Lankans frustrated with the entrenched political elites.

In the 2015 general elections, he contested from Colombo district and won, and later served as the Chief Opposition Whip in Parliament. Dissanayake’s speeches in Parliament during this period showcased his ability to dissect government policies with surgical precision, gaining him a reputation as a fierce critic of corruption and political patronage.

His ability to articulate the frustrations of ordinary Sri Lankans earned him widespread admiration. By 2019, Dissanayake emerged as a major figure in Sri Lankan politics, and was made the presidential candidate for the newly formed National People’s Power (NPP) coalition.

Although he received just 3.16% of the votes, it was the 2019 campaign that laid the groundwork for the 2024 election, where the country’s political landscape was forever altered by economic collapse and widespread discontent.

The 2022 protests that toppled the Gotabaya Rajapaksa regime catapulted the JVP, and by extension Dissanayake, to the forefront of the national consciousness. The once-powerful Rajapaksa family, long considered invincible in Sri Lankan politics, crumbled under the weight of popular unrest over their handling of the economy.

With the NPP coalition on the threshold of making history now, with Dissanayake at the helm, it is considered to be a shift that promises a break from the past.

In the 2024 presidential race, Dissanayake’s platform of reform resonated with voters who had grown weary of political patronage and dynastic rule. Early election results showed him leading, as his closest rivals struggled to gain traction. Namal Rajapaksa, another candidate and the son of Mahinda Rajapaksa failed to get even 5% vote share.

Dissanayake’s rebranding of the JVP into a broader coalition, coupled with his focus on women’s empowerment and the marginalised, are seen as key factors that earned him widespread support.