Sri Lanka Prime Ministers List & Cabinet Ministers List 2025

Explore the updated list of Sri Lanka Prime Ministers and Cabinet Ministers for 2025, including key historical insights and living former Prime Ministers.

Sri Lanka Prime Ministers List: The position of Prime Minister in Sri Lanka was established in 1947, shortly before Ceylon, the island's former name, gained independence as the Dominion of Ceylon. The dominion status was preserved for 24 years, until May 22, 1972, when it transitioned into a republic and was renamed the Republic of Sri Lanka.

The Prime Minister is responsible for leading the Cabinet and serves as the deputy to the President. In the unfortunate event of a President passing away in office, the Prime Minister assumes the role of acting President until the Parliament elects a successor or new elections can be organized to select a new President. A notable incident occurred in 1993 when President Ranasinghe Premadasa was assassinated, resulting in PM Dingiri Banda Wijetunga taking on the duties of President. Below is the complete list of Sri Lanka's Prime Ministers along with their tenures.

Sri Lanka Prime Ministers List

NameTenure
Don Stephen SenanayakeSeptember 24, 1947 to March 22, 1952
Dudley SenanayakeMarch 26, 1952 to October 12, 1953
Sir John KotelawalaOctober 12, 1953 to April 12, 1956
Solomon West Ridgeway Dias BandaranaikeApril 12, 1956 to September 26, 1959
Wijeyananda DahanayakeSeptember 26, 1959 to March 20, 1960
Dudley SenanayakeMarch 21, 1960 to July 21, 1960
Sirimavo BandaranaikeJuly 21, 1960 to March 25, 1965
Dudley SenanayakeMarch 25, 1965 to May 29, 1970
Sirimavo BandaranaikeMay 29, 1970 to July 23, 1977
Junius Richard JayewardeneJuly 23, 1977 to February 4, 1978
Ranasinghe PremadasaFebruary 6, 1978 to January 2, 1989
Dingiri Banda WijetungaMarch 6, 1989 to May 7, 1993
Ranil WickremesingheMay 7, 1993 to August 19, 1994
Chandrika KumaratungaAugust 19, 1994 to November 12, 1994
Sirimavo BandaranaikeNovember 14, 1994 to August 9, 2000
Ratnasiri WickremanayakeAugust 10, 2000 to December 7, 2001
Ranil WickremesingheDecember 9, 2001 to April 6, 2004
Mahinda RajapaksaApril 6, 2004 to November 19, 2005
Ratnasiri WickremanayakeNovember 19, 2005 to April 21, 2010
D M JayaratneApril 21, 2010 to January 9, 2015
Ranil WickremesingheJanuary 9, 2015 to October 26, 2018
Mahinda RajapaksaOctober 26, 2018 to December 15, 2018
Ranil WickremesingheDecember 16, 2018 to November 21, 2019
Mahinda RajapaksaNovember 21, 2019 to May 9, 2022
Sri Lanka Prime Ministers List

Living Former Prime Ministers List

Prime MinisterTerm of OfficeDate of Birth
Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga199429/06/1945
Mahinda Rajapaksa2004 - 2005, 2018, 2019-202218/11/1945
List of Living Former Prime Ministers

Sri Lanka Cabinet Ministers List

For detailed information on the Sri Lanka Prime Ministers and the list of Cabinet Ministers, please visit Cabinet Office - Sri Lanka.

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