Presidents

#	Name	Portrait	Entered office	Left Office	Political party		Notable events and achievements
1	William Gopallawa William Gopallawa William Gopallawa , MBE was the last Governor General of Ceylon from 1962 to 1972 and became the first President of Sri Lanka when Ceylon declared itself a republic in 1972 and changed its name to Sri Lanka... (1897–1981)		22 May 1972	4 February 1978	Non-party
2	Junius Richard Jayewardene Junius Richard Jayewardene Junius Richard Jayewardene , famously abbreviated in Sri Lanka as JR, was the first executive President of Sri Lanka, serving from 1978 till 1989. He was a leader of the nationalist movement in Ceylon who served in a variety of cabinet positions in the decades following independence... (1906–1996)		4 February 1978	2 January 1989	United National Party United National Party The United National Party, often referred to as the UNP ), , is a political party in Sri Lanka. It currently is the main opposition party in Sri Lanka and is headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe...		Jayewardene introduced the Executive Presidency in 1978, and assumed the position of President of Sri Lanka.
3	Ranasinghe Premadasa Ranasinghe Premadasa Ranasinghe Premadasa was the 3rd President of Sri Lanka from January 2, 1989 to May 1, 1993. Before that, he served as the Prime Minister in the government headed by J. R. Jayewardene from February 6, 1978 to January 1, 1989... (1924–1993)		2 January 1989	1 May 1993	United National Party United National Party The United National Party, often referred to as the UNP ), , is a political party in Sri Lanka. It currently is the main opposition party in Sri Lanka and is headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe...		Ranasinghe Premadasa was killed during a May day May Day May Day on May 1 is an ancient northern hemisphere spring festival and usually a public holiday; it is also a traditional spring holiday in many cultures....  rally, by an LTTE Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was a separatist militant organization formerly based in northern Sri Lanka. Founded in May 1976 by Vellupillai Prabhakaran, it waged a violent secessionist and nationalist campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri Lanka for Tamil...  suicide bomber Suicide attack A suicide attack is a type of attack in which the attacker expects or intends to die in the process.- Historical :... .
4	Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Dingiri Banda Wijetunga Dingiri Banda Wijetunga was the President of Sri Lanka from May 1, 1993 to November 12, 1994, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka from March 3, 1989 to May 7, 1993 and the Governor of North Western province, Sri Lanka from 1988 to 1989.-Early life:... (1916–2008)		2 May 1993	12 November 1994	United National Party United National Party The United National Party, often referred to as the UNP ), , is a political party in Sri Lanka. It currently is the main opposition party in Sri Lanka and is headed by Ranil Wickremesinghe...
5	Chandrika Kumaratunga Chandrika Kumaratunga Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga born June 29, 1945) was the 4th Executive president of Sri Lanka, serving from November 12, 1994 to November 19, 2005. The daughter of two former Prime Ministers, she was also the leader of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party until end of 2005... (1945–)		12 November 1994	19 November 2005	People's Alliance People's Alliance (Sri Lanka) The People's Alliance is a front of political parties in Sri Lanka, formed in 1994.It comprises the following parties:* Sri Lanka Freedom Party* Lanka Sama Samaja Party* Communist Party of Sri Lanka* Sri Lanka Mahajana Party...
6	Mahinda Rajapaksa Mahinda Rajapaksa Percy Mahendra "Mahinda" Rajapaksa ; ; born November 18, 1945) is the 6th and current President of Sri Lanka and Commander in Chief of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. A lawyer by profession, Rajapaksa was first elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka in 1970, and served as prime minister from April 6,... (1945–)		19 November 2005	Incumbent	United People's Freedom Alliance United People's Freedom Alliance The United People's Freedom Alliance is a political alliance in Sri Lanka. The current leader of the United People's Freedom Alliance is Mahinda Rajapaksa and Susil Premajayantha is the general secretary of UPFA.The alliance was formed by:...		Mahinda Rajapaksha ended 25 year long civil war Sri Lankan civil war The Sri Lankan Civil War was a conflict fought on the island of Sri Lanka. Beginning on July 23, 1983, there was an on-and-off insurgency against the government by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam , a separatist militant organization which fought to create an independent Tamil state named Tamil...  and LTTE Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was a separatist militant organization formerly based in northern Sri Lanka. Founded in May 1976 by Vellupillai Prabhakaran, it waged a violent secessionist and nationalist campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri Lanka for Tamil...  terrorism in the country.

See also

• President of Sri Lanka
  President of Sri Lanka
  The President of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is the elected head of state and the head of government. The President is a dominant political figure in Sri Lanka. The office was created in 1978 but has grown so powerful there have been calls to restrict or even eliminate its power...
  
  
• Prime Minister of Sri Lanka
  Prime Minister of Sri Lanka
  The Prime Minister of Sri Lanka is the functional head of the Cabinet of Sri Lanka. However, the President is both head of state and head of government in Sri Lanka...
  
  
• Politics of Sri Lanka
  Politics of Sri Lanka
  Politics of Sri Lanka takes place in a framework of a presidential representative democratic republic, whereby the President of Sri Lanka is both head of state and head of government, and of a multi-party system. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both...
  
  
• Presidential Secretariat
  Presidential Secretariat
  The Presidential Secretariat is the office of the President of Sri Lanka. It provides the administrative and institutional framework for the exercise of the duties, responsibilities and powers vested in the President by the Constitution....
  
  

External links

• Indian Express on the Executive Presidency