Sri Lanka has a Republican form of Government. The current constitution was adopted in 1978. Universal suffrage began in 1931. The age of voting is 18 and above.

The executive branch consists of the President and a Cabinet of Ministers headed by the President. The President who is elected directly by the people for a six-year term (maximum two terms) is Head of the State and Head of Government. The Prime Minister is appointed by the President from among the Members of Parliament.

The legislature is called "parliament" (the equivalent of the US Congress) and consists of 225 representatives (from whom Ministers are appointed by the President). The Members of Parliament (or MP's) are elected for 6 year terms at periodical General Elections through a system of proportional representation.

The Sri Lankan Parliament is a Unicameral (one chamber) assembly.

Major Political Parties

The ruling People's Alliance (PA), is dominated by the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP); the main opposition party is the United National Party, (UNP). Other parties represented in Parliament are The Sri Lanka Mahajana Party (SLMP), Democratic United National Front (DUNF), Communist Party (CP), Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP), Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC), Democratic People's Liberation Front (DPLF), and Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC)

The Judicial power of the people is exercised by an independent judiciary.

The Judiciary is headed by the Chief Justice who is appointed by the President.

The different levels of the judiciary are:

* The Supreme Court

* The Court of Appeal

* The High Court

* Courts of first instance and tribunals